The Truth Behind Xehanort
by MegaKiraraLover
Summary: The Keybladers have finally returned to Destiny Islands after their adventure. Things have finally settled down and everything has seemingly returned to normal. But when a letter comes from the king, everything changes. "Xehanort had a WHAT?" HAITUS
1. Prolog

Kingdom Hearts:

The Truth Behind Xehanort

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Summary: Riku, Sora, and Kairi have finally returned to Destiny Islands after their two and a half year-long adventure across the universe. Things have finally settled down and everything has seemingly returned to the normal, boring way it was before. But when a letter from the King sets off a mysterious chain of events, can Riku save the one thing dearer to him than his friends? And better yet--what is this secret King Mickey has uncovered by going through the files on Ansem's computer...? "XEHANORT HAD A _WHAT_?!" "A fiancée, Riku. Xehanort had a fiancée." Pairings: Xehanort/OC; Suggested/Friendships: Any and All! (ie, Axel/RoxasSuggested, Zexion/LexaeusSuggested, Riku/SoraSuggested, Sora/KairiSuggested, Riku/Kairi/SoraSuggested, Zexion/DemyxSuggested, Xigbar/XaldinSuggested, etc.)

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Warnings: Major spoilers mixed in, bad language, hinted shonen-ai, possible/suggested (graphic?) character death, gruesome and multiple fight scenes, graphic torture, and possible (attempted?) (graphic?) suicide. Warnings are subject to change as story proceeds.

( ) - ( ) - ( ) - ( )

Notes: 7-1-08 I don't own KH, FF(insert number here), any sort of anime/manga titles, or Disney, so anything related to them is not mine. I do, however, own my OCs, this storyline, and so on. Please excuse any problems with anyone's characters, as for about three of them, I truthfully have little to no experience and am going only on what I believe would be appropriate. And if you have any suggestions for anything, feel free to tell me! I enjoy flames, too--just not the perverted kind. X3

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**LUCRECIA'S JOURNAL, PROLOG ONE:**

**MOTHER**

**((MKL: aka "background for the story and the keybladers' dramatic return!"))**

Lucrecia was her name. Lucrecia Xen, mother of Riku Xen, current resident of a beautiful house next to the mayor's on the beach. She and Riku lived alone, and the story went that her old husband had been left behind when she and Riku moved to Destiny Islands, since he worked for a big-shot scientist on another planet. Lucrecia spoke only wonderful things about him, creating an almost fairy tale that entranced Riku for years. She only ever refered to him as "Dad" or "Father" around Riku, but he had once heard her call him "Xeha" when speaking with an old friend of the family that Riku never really met when he was only six.

That was the last time Riku heard of that friend, and Lucrecia had never brought up him or any other "old friends" since.

Riku and his mother had been outcasts when they first arrived, a black spot on the clean white rag of Destiny Islands, where every family had a mother, a father, and between two and six children. For two months they were basically ignored, until the mayor herself came and made Lucrecia her new secratery and introduced Riku to her grandson, Sora. The two had immidiately bonded and they were best friends ever since, and still are to this very day.

Everything went smoothly for seven years after that, at which point in time a young redheaded girl who was about nine years old appeared on a nearby beach and was immidiately taken under the care of the mayor, living in the same house as Sora and immidiately joining the two of them in their little journies to the island. Six more years passed, and then Riku voiced his oppinion about them building a raft so they could journey to other world.

The rest is, as they say, history.

During the first half of the three's two(and a half)-year absense, Lucrecia had an adventure of her own, but that will be explained later. All that matters is that, when Destiny Islands re-formed, she was sent back and absolutely _frantic_. She had searched every island in the whole of the planet looking for them, and come back with nothing but broken stories from the other people who had returned and information from Wakka that said he saw Sora going to the kids' island on his boat when the world was first destroyed. Lucrecia had followed up on that and found absolutely nothing.

When Riku, Sora, and Kairi first returned just two months after Lucrecia and the rest of Destiny Islands gave up hope, to say that she was in hysterics would be an understatement.

"Riku," Lucrecia gasped, hands going to her mouth as tears started up in her almost feline purple-blue eyes. Riku shifted uncomfortably in the doorway of their spacious house, head leaning forward so that his long, shaggy hair hid his eyes from her view.

"Mom," he mumbled quietly. Lucrecia exclaimed something incoherent and lunged forward, tackling her son (who was now almost an inch taller than her) in a hug and craddling him to her carefully, tears streaming down her face.

"Oh Riku, you're back," she sobbed, tucking his head under her chin and gently stroking his long silver-white hair. "Riku, you're back...you're back...you're all right, Riku...you're all right...!"

Riku neglected to respond, standing limply in his mother's arms as she continued to cry, her tears soaking onto his head. Nearly three minutes passed before Lucrecia regained control of herself and pulled back, smiling so widely that it looked like her face was about to split open as she grabbed Riku's hand.

"Come on, Riku. We have a lot of catching up to do. I want to know everything--where you were, what you did, who you met...everything!"

Riku looked a bit hesitant as he was pulled inside, but when he finally caught sight of the familiar setting of his living room, he visibly relaxed and a half-smile slowly spread across his face as he nodded. His mother led him into the kitchen and sat him down at the table as she walked over to the fridge, continuing to smile.

"Do you want something to drink or eat?" she asked him brightly. Riku gave a slight chuckle.

"I'm fine, Mom," he assured her. Lucrecia seemed to brighten even more at the sound of her son's laughter and grabbed two water bottles anyway, walking back to the table and sliding one to him. He caught it easily and stared down at it for a few moments, smile slowly falling as she sat down across from him.

Lucrecia, on the other hand, continued to smile re-assuringly. "Now I want to hear everything. What happened to you when the Islands were destroyed?"

Riku glanced up in surprise at that. "You remember?"

"Of course," Lucrecia chuckled, shaking her head. Her long, black hair gently hit her face, the blue traces coming out greatly in the gentle light filtering into the room and greatly contrasting her pale face. She glanced towards Riku again and chuckled once more at the shocked expression on his face. "I went on my own little adventure while you were gone in this place called 'Traverse Town'. It was quite entertaining, and I met some of the nicest people there..."

She died off and blinked in confusion when she saw how Riku was sitting there, ramrod-straight as his short fingernails of his right hand dug into the waterbottle, which was shaking a bit. "Something wrong, Riku?" she asked, slightly alarmed. Riku almost immidiately relaxed and the waterbottle stopped shaking as he quickly shook his head, managing to plaster on a fake smile.

"No, nothing," he quickly said. Lucrecia gave him a disbelieving look, her thin left eyebrow arched delicatly. Riku kept up the fake smile for a few moments before it slowly fell and he let out a quiet sigh, sea-blue gaze falling to stare at the waterbottle he was still clutching. "...I...don't want to talk about it."

Lucrecia gave him a long, hard look before finally sighing, smiling gently at him again and reaching out to take his left hand, which was laying out on the table before him. He glanced up in surprise as she gave a re-assuring squeeze, smile soft and kind. "We can talk about it when you're ready, then," she decided with quiet finality. "I'm just...happy to see you back unharmed."

Riku could not hold back his returning smile. Maybe...maybe things would be all right.

He was unware of the flickering form of Xehanort's Heartless that had appeared behind him, invisible to the other two in the room and smirking rather sadistically down at the scene before it. This whole thing was working out better than it had hoped. Its orange-red gaze drifted towards Lucrecia and its smirk widened.

It would _not_ let this opportunity pass it by.


	2. Chapter 1

Kingdom Hearts:

The Truth Behind Xehanort

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Summary: Riku, Sora, and Kairi have finally returned to Destiny Islands after their two and a half year-long adventure across the universe. Things have finally settled down and everything has seemingly returned to the normal, boring way it was before. But when a letter from the King sets off a mysterious chain of events, can Riku save the one thing dearer to him than his friends? And better yet--what is this secret King Mickey has uncovered by going through the files on Ansem's computer...? "XEHANORT HAD A _WHAT_?!" "A fiancée, Riku. Xehanort had a fiancée." Pairings: Xehanort/OC; Suggested/Friendships: Any and All! (ie, Axel/RoxasSuggested, Zexion/LexaeusSuggested, Riku/SoraSuggested, Sora/KairiSuggested, Riku/Kairi/SoraSuggested, Zexion/DemyxSuggested, Xigbar/XaldinSuggested, etc.)

( ) - ( ) - ( ) - ( )

Warnings: Major spoilers mixed in, bad language, hinted shonen-ai, possible/suggested (graphic?) character death, gruesome and multiple fight scenes, graphic torture, and possible (attempted?) (graphic?) suicide. Warnings are subject to change as story proceeds.

( ) - ( ) - ( ) - ( )

Notes: 7-1-08 I don't own KH, FF(insert number here), any sort of anime/manga titles, or Disney, so anything related to them is not mine. I do, however, own my OCs, this storyline, and so on. Please excuse any problems with anyone's characters, as for about three of them, I truthfully have little to no experience and am going only on what I believe would be appropriate. And if you have any suggestions for anything, feel free to tell me! I enjoy flames, too--just not the perverted kind. X3

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**RIKU'S JOURNAL, ENTRY ONE:**

**LETTER**

**((MKL: aka "the chapter with lots of jumping around!"))**

Riku had decided to don the clothes he had worn for their adventure that day, nearly three weeks after their fight with Xemnas had ended. He was sitting on the paopu tree, his feet dangling before him as he gazed lazily out at the churning water of the ocean before him. He was thinking about many things--Xehanort's Heartless, the Darkness, his mother, what he would be willing to tell her, what he would tell his friends when they found out he had returned with Sora and Kairi--but the most promident thought was about his mother.

She had made it perfectly clear when he first returned that she would forgive him no matter what he did and that she loved him for who he was and always would. Of course, he had refrained from responding to that, instead making the excuse that he was tired and sliding off to go to bed. She had not pressed him since, but despite that, Riku found himself dropping little tidbits of information, including his attempts to build a raft so he could explore the universe. Lucrecia had merely smiled at that and nodded, saying that she had felt the same way nearly twenty-seven years ago. When Riku had questioned that statement, clearly confused, Lucrecia had merely suggested they make chocolate-chip cookies and went off to the store to get the ingridients.

Lucrecia was like that. If she did not like a topic, she tended to make some sort of random suggestion--usually something to do with baking--and then went off to go start it. She had used this tactic often when Riku questioned about things such as any other family they might have had and why she always retreated to her study to stare at that picture he never could find when she found a spare moment.

Riku frowned at that one, leaning back a bit on the tree and bracing himself with his hands. He had not seen that picture in the three weeks since he had returned, which was quite odd. While he had no idea what the picture was, exactly, he did get the idea that it had something to do with his mother's life before she had him, but since she always stored it away before he could find it for as long as he could remember, he had no idea.

He was distracted when he saw Sora running towards him, grinning stupidly and lunging over the paopu tree to lean next to him. Riku smiled a bit and returned his gaze to the ocean.

"Nothing's changed, huh?" he asked quietly. Sora seemed aware that he was speaking of the island itself and not the people in it, since the younger smiled in return.

"Nope," he agreed, folding his arms behind his head and leaning back a bit. "Nothing will."

Riku chuckled a bit. "What a small world."

Sora's smile widened. "But part of one that's much bigger."

"Yeah," Riku agreed quietly.

There were a few moments of blissful silence before Sora spoke up again.

"Hey, Riku..." Sora began slowly, glancing upwards at Riku and blinking innocently. "What do you think it was--the Door to the Light?"

Riku grinned and jumped from the tree, turning towards Sora and poking his friend's chest gently. "This," he merely said.

Sora blinked slowly and dropped his arms, putting his hand over the spot that Riku had poked and clearly still a bit confused. "This?"

"Yeah." Riku's grin turned into a soft smile. "It's always closer than you think."

Sora stared down at his chest for a few moments before he slowly smiled again.

"Sora!" Kairi suddenly called, distracting the two teenage boys. They glanced over curiously as she ran across the bridge, waving a longneck bottle in the air. "Riku!"

She made her way over to them and paused, huffing a bit as she leaned forward with her hands on her knees. Obviously confused again, Sora tilted his head, although he continued to smile. "Hey, what's up?" he asked, interested. Kairi glanced up at him and smiled, holding out the bottle, which held a rolled up piece of paper inside of it.

"Look."

"From the King?" Sora half-gasped, oogling at the seal. When he made no move to take it, Riku snagged it from his friend.

"Sora, fix your mouth," he half-joked, pulling the cork out easily and tipping the bottle. Sora scowled playfully at him and grabbed the letter that slid out before Riku could, quickly unrolling it and scanning the contents. Kairi clasped her hands behind her back and glanced over Sora's left shoulder while Riku merely tilted his head, looking over Sora's spikey, bark-brown hair and blinking once as he read the contents.

The letter said:

Sora, Riku, and Kairi:

Sorry to bug ya like this, but we've got a bit of a problem. I can't talk about it right now, so come to Radient Garden. Come straight to Ansem's study--I'll be waiting there. I found somethin' that you guys really should see as soon as possible. You still have the _Falcon Peak_, right, Sora? If ya don't, Goofy and Donald'll come to find ya in about a week. They'll know through Chip and Dale if ya leave or not.

o o  
0

((MKL: it's Mickey's seal...sort of))

PS-

Riku, you said your mom was "Lucrecia Xen", right? Dark hair with natural blue highlights and purple-blue eyes? If that's her, make sure she comes with. Tell her it's about Xeha and everyone. She'll come.

Silence.

"...Riku...how does he know about your mom?" Kairi asked quietly after nearly a full minute had passed. Riku seemed floored and stared openly at the letter.

"I...mentioned her once or twice," he admitted, voice suddenly sounding slightly hoarse. He continued to stare at the letter.

"Something wrong, Riku?" Sora asked, immidiately concerned as he folded up the letter. Riku continued to stare at the spot where it had been, eyes a bit wider than normal.

"Sora..." He lifted his gaze to catch Sora's, disbelief leaking through his voice. "Xeha is my _father_."

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Lucrecia hummed a quiet melody as she walked into her son's room, smiling fondly at the carefully made bed that looked vaguely out of place amoung the T-shirts, pants, and shorts scattered all over the floor. She was finally able to walk into there and not question her reason for living after doing so for nearly two and a half years, because her reason had returned. True, he was older than he had been and a bit secretive about what had happened during those two and a half years, but she had managed to pry from him a few fun facts.

Lucrecia bent down and set down the clothes basket on the floor near the door, beginning to gather up the clothes as she thought idly about everything she had gathered. First off, the reason why he had thought about leaving in the first place, although she had known that before. Since Kairi--the same Kairi that Lucrecia had helped to take care of shortly after the young girl had been born--had first appeared, the boy was itching to go and find out exactly what else was out there, although what he had planned to do with only a raft and less than two days' worth of supplies not even he seemed to know.

When the Islands were first taken by Darkness, he had ended up on some planet called Hollow Bastian, where he had met a woman who tried to use him and seemed to have at least partially succeeded, if the way that he had trailed off shortly after beginning to speak about her was any indication. Lucrecia had no idea what had happened for a little while after that, but he had found Sora on a planet known as Traverse Town, the very same one she had ended up on. The two had never crossed paths there, something which had Lucrecia nearly ready to tear her hair out at her stupidity when she found out, but Riku had abandoned Sora when it seemed like the brunette child had new friends that he "cared much more about".

Of course, Lucrecia knew that was stupid thinking and had snorted at him when he said it, but she kept herself from making any comments.

After a few battles with the Heartless--which Lucrecia knew enough about to be immidiately worried before Riku assured her he had come through fine--he had met up with the King of another world. The two had made it to a castle of some sort where Riku fought the "demons of his past" and finally conquered his "Darkness", as he called it. While this had confused Lucrecia, she knew better than to push her son and instead pretended that this much information was enough to quench her thirst for understanding.

Riku had mentioned something about someone known as DiZ at one point and about how he was a revenge-obsessed old man who had actually saved him from the Darkness when it changed his physical appearence (something that unsettled Lucrecia a bit, although she managed to hide that from her son so he would go on). Then he had helped save the universe from a "crazy old cook" who was the leader of fourteen or fifteeen (the exact number varied a bit) humanoid Nobodys, another creature Lucrecia had known about, although what she did know was very little.

Lucrecia had been estatic to learn that her son had helped save the universe once, probably twice over--he seemed a bit too secretive when it came to the first battles, so Lucrecia decided to hope for the best in that situation--although he was still grounded indefinately and only allowed to leave the house when he told Lucrecia where he was going and she approved. He had readily agreed to the terms and told her in response that he was "just happy to finally return home".

"Mom!" someone called suddenly from downstairs as the door slammed. Lucrecia smiled gently and grabbed the basket, starting towards the laundry room down the hall.

Speak of the devil.

"Riku, I'm doing laundry!" she called brightly, shoving open the door with her hip and taking a step inside. She was again humming quietly as she heard him charge up the stairs, at least two other sets of feet following. Lucrecia tilted her head and blinked, putting down her basket and turning just in time to catch Riku speeding into the doorway, slidding to a stop at the last moment and catching onto the doorway. Sora and Kairi ran up behind him, and Lucrecia's brow furrowed in confusion when she saw the slightly crazed gleam to Riku's eye.

"Something wrong, Ri-Ri?" she asked, tilting her head a fraction. Riku quickly shook his head, looking a bit winded as Sora snickered at the nickname. The brunette was ignored by Riku and Lucrecia, although Kairi lightly bopped him on the head and hissed something Lucrecia could not make out.

"Mom," he said, gazing at her pointedly between locks of silver-white hair, "we just recieved a letter from King Mickey."

"Your friend?" Lucrecia smiled a bit and fixed her waist-length hair back into a bun, a few stray locks falling over her forehead to create a relatively cute look. "And what did he say?"

This is where Riku hesitated a moment, gaze drifting a bit to the side. "...he said..." His quiet voice quickly rose and he looked at Lucrecia with determination in his light blue eyes. "He said he found some information in Radient Garden." Lucrecia's eyes widened as Riku went on. "And that it had to do with someone named 'Xeha'."

Lucrecia stared at Riku for a few moments, expression frozen in a look akin to shock, before she sunk to her knees. Her expression was distant and she did not hear her son when he asked what was wrong and rushed to her side, nor did she hear Sora and Kairi calling her name frantically.

"Xeha..." was all she could say, causing everyone to pause and stare at her. Tears misted her eyes and then silently fell down her face as she gazed at the doorway, looking like she was not all there. "...my Xeha...Radient Garden...and...my...Xeha...!"

She would say no more.

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The next day, Riku, Sora, Kairi, and Lucrecia were prepared to leave on the adventure. Despite the insistance from Riku that she rest for at least a day before they start their inter-universe adventure, Lucrecia had refused to let them stay behind for any longer than nessicary. So with a quick call to Sora's mother and the mayor to tell them that Lucrecia was taking the children to another island to visit some of her relatives, the four were packed and ready to leave.

"Mom, are you sure--?" Riku asked one last time, gazing at Lucrecia with worry shining in his eyes. Lucrecia grinned and winked at him in return.

"Ri-Ri, you can't just stick me in a plastic bubble," she chuckled good-naturedly as Riku shot her a doubtful look. "Don't worry, I'll be fine. I spent nearly a year in Traverse Town, you know." She made a fist and held it up, bracing her elbow with her other hand and flashing a grin at her son. "You had to know at least a little self-defense if you lived in Second District!"

"Didn't everyone live in Second District?" Sora asked, confused. Lucrecia merely turned her grin to him and flashed another wink.

"You lived in Traverse Town after the Islands were destroyed?" Kairi suddenly asked, eyes wide in surprise. Lucrecia nodded, grin turning into a soft smile as she dropped her arms, following the three teens to the spot on the kids' island where they hid their Gummiship.

"I did," she agreed. "I met the nicest people there, too. Of course, some of them I knew from, uh, around, but most of them were new."

"Did you know Leon?" Sora asked, obviously interested.

"I do!" Lucrecia turned her smile to him and nodded. "He's a nice boy. A bit quiet, and I really have no idea why he insists on being so distant. He used to be such an open young boy..."

"You knew him before?" Riku immidiately asked, eyes narrowed a fraction. Lucrecia winced at that and her smile slowly fell before returning with full-force.

"So, how close are we to the Gummiship?" she asked, ignoring the question completely. She clasped her hands in front of her long, forest-green sundress, which reached her knees and accented her eyes nicely. "I want to get there as soon as possible!"

"Oh, uh, it's just up ahead," Kairi said, smiling a bit in return, but obviously as confused as Sora. Riku, used to his mother's tactics, merely sighed and rolled his eyes.

"Really? And we're going straight to Radient Garden?"

"Yeah," Sora said with a grin and a bright nod. "I can't wait to see everyone again! And I can finally introduce them to you guys!"

"Say, does Squall still have that awesome Gunblade from his father?" Kairi suddenly asked, grinning. Sora nodded excitedly, the force of the comment flying over his head.

"Hell yeah!"

"Sora, watch your language," Lucrecia said with an arched eyebrow. Sora hunched his shoulders as the tips of his ears turned pink.

"Uh, yes, ma'am," he mumbled, eyes dropping. Riku snickered at his expense, knowing his mother was relatively strict about language in front of other people, but really did not care so long as curses were not said in public. And apparently she thought the kids' island counted as "public".

"Sora, we're here!" Kairi suddenly exclaimed, practically jumping out of her shoes. Sora perked up and grinned, running up to the large, white ship in front of them as Kairi laughed and followed him, Riku and Lucrecia trailing behind a moment.

"...Riku," she suddenly said, looking quite serious as she locked gazes with her son, "I hope you know that I'm proud of you." Riku stared at her, confused, then paled a bit when she went on. "I think you did some things you weren't happy about while you were away, but no matter what you did, you tried to fix it and you made it home to me. As a matter of fact, I'm much happier now than I ever was before you left, and I just want you to know that you could tell me anything. Okay?"

Riku hesitated for a moment before he slowly nodded. "...yes," he finally said, eyes lighting up with a fierce protectiveness that he only ever showed for Lucrecia, Sora, and Kairi. "I know. And soon, I will."

And so Lucrecia was content, although neither knew that a mysterious force was following them, smirking at the scene.

"How touching," Xehanort's Heartless muttered rather sarcastically. "Very touching. But I wonder...will she fall as easily to my power as her son did? After all...when I was a Somebody..."

Its smirk widened and it chuckled sadistically, shadowy form flickering out of existance and leaving behind only its ghostly laugh to signal that it had even been there in the first place.

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"Wow," Lucrecia mumbled, staring out at the planet that they had finally arrived on. Riku and Sora glanced over as Kairi smiled a bit and nodded.

"Yeah," she agreed quietly, moving to stand next to Lucrecia with her hands clasped gently behind her back. "It's a bit worse for wear, but still..."

Lucrecia smiled a bit and spoke in a voice too quiet for anyone but the young redhead to hear. "It's home."

Kairi giggled a bit and nodded, smiling up at her friend's mother. "Yep. Home." She paused a moment and glanced towards Riku, frowning a bit. "Does he know?"

"No," Lucrecia sighed, shaking her head as she pressed her thin hands to the glass as the ship slowly began to descend. "I was going to tell him when his father got a hold of me, but..."

She sighed again and pressed her forehead against the glass, slowly closing her eyes. "I haven't heard from anyone in nearly nine years now, and I haven't seen anyone for twelve," she finally admitted. "I think something happened to him and his friends, but I have no idea what..."

It did not take a rocket scientist to figure out that Lucrecia was speaking of Riku's father.

"So who _was_ Riku's dad?" Kairi asked, interested. At that, Lucrecia clammed up.

Just when Kairi was about to ask her question again, Riku called, "Mom, Kairi! We're leaving!"

"Coming, Riku!" Lucrecia immidiately called, smiling brightly as she pulled back from the window and jogged over to him. Kairi sighed and stared after her for a few moments, alone in the Gummiship.

"Any ideas?" she asked herself quietly. Namine stirred in the back of her mind.

_"None,"_ was the ghostly response from the Nobody. _"She's not close enough to Sora for me to dive into her memories, either. Sorry, Kairi."_

Kairi again sighed and shook her head before walking out the doorway.

Maybe she could ask Leon. He seemed to know a lot about Radient Garden's past. Hopefully he would be more willing to give her some answers...


	3. Chapter 2

Kingdom Hearts:

The Truth Behind Xehanort

( ) - ( ) - ( ) - ( )

Summary: Riku, Sora, and Kairi have finally returned to Destiny Islands after their two and a half year-long adventure across the universe. Things have finally settled down and everything has seemingly returned to the normal, boring way it was before. But when a letter from the King sets off a mysterious chain of events, can Riku save the one thing dearer to him than his friends? And better yet--what is this secret King Mickey has uncovered by going through the files on Ansem's computer...? "XEHANORT HAD A _WHAT_?!" "A fiancée, Riku. Xehanort had a fiancée." Pairings: Xehanort/OC; Suggested/Friendships: Any and All! (ie, Axel/RoxasSuggested, Zexion/LexaeusSuggested, Riku/SoraSuggested, Sora/KairiSuggested, Riku/Kairi/SoraSuggested, Zexion/DemyxSuggested, Xigbar/XaldinSuggested, etc.)

( ) - ( ) - ( ) - ( )

Warnings: Major spoilers mixed in, bad language, hinted shonen-ai, possible/suggested (graphic?) character death, gruesome and multiple fight scenes, graphic torture, and possible (attempted?) (graphic?) suicide. Warnings are subject to change as story proceeds.

( ) - ( ) - ( ) - ( )

Notes: 7-2-08 I don't own KH, FF(insert number here), any sort of anime/manga titles, or Disney, so anything related to them is not mine. I do, however, own my OCs, this storyline, and so on. Please excuse any problems with anyone's characters, as for about three of them, I truthfully have little to no experience and am going only on what I believe would be appropriate. And if you have any suggestions for anything, feel free to tell me! I enjoy flames, too--just not the perverted kind. X3

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**LUCRECIA'S JOURNAL, ENTRY TWO:**

**(RE)INTRODUCTIONS**

**((MKL: aka "there are a lot of bad jokes here!"))**

"I remember this place," Lucrecia said with a smile and a gentle laugh as Sora led the way down the maze of corridors that lead to Ansem's study. "Xeha and I used to come here when we wanted to be alone. But we always seemed to be interupted for one reason or another..."

"So wait," Sora suddenly called, confused as he glanced over his shoulder, "you know about this planet?"

Lucrecia did not respond, and was saved from doing so when they rounded the corner that lead to Ansem's Study.

"We're here," she said brightly, smiling again and rushing up to the door. She waited for the other three to come before throwing it open, eyes widening in disbelief when she saw the disarray the office was in.

"Man, it looks even messier than last time," Sora complained as he walked into the room.

"Hmph, DiZ would never let his rooms get into this state of disarray," Riku responded, frowning as his eyes narrowed. He folded his arms over his chest as his gaze drifted over the room. "Someone must have gotten pissed..."

"It was never this messy when I came here," Kairi mumbled too quietly for anyone else to hear, blinking in confusion. Lucrecia merely continued to stare, noticing the familiar writing style of the person who supposedly wrote on the walls. She walked up to the nearest sample and slowly ran her hand over the purple chalk, which had soaked into the wall after so many years and hardly shifted under her touch.

"Xeha," she mumbled, staring absently at the writing and giving a soft sigh of almost defeat, "what were you doing? Why did you destroy Master Ansem's study? Why..." She paused as her gaze fell on the only picture in-tact on the desk and picked it up, tears building up in her eyes, although she struggled to blink them away. "Why did you keep this picture?"

"King Mickey!" Sora suddenly gasped, startling Lucrecia and causing her to shove the picture into the only pocket on the right side of her dress. She whirled around as Riku and Sora dropped down into a bowing position, Kairi smiling a bit as she merely bent forward. Lucrecia blinked in surprise.

"Hiya, guys!" Mickey said with a grin, tail swishing behind him as Sora and Riku quickly straightened up again. The small mouse waved brightly, wearing the Sora-esque outfit he had worn during the majority of their fighting against Organization XIII. "Gee, you sure made it here fast!"

"Of course," Riku said with a grin. "Did you really doubt it?"

Mickey merely chuckled.

"Hello," Kairi said, smiling and nodding at Mickey. The King glanced over and smiled again.

"Princess Kairi," he greeted, bowing at her. She seemed startled and a flush slowly started up her face.

"Uh, j-just Kairi..." She swallowed and gave a nervous sort of smile, waving her hand around in front of her as Sora and Riku exchanged amused smiles. "K-King Mickey."

Mickey grinned at her and nodded before noticing Lucrecia and smiling again, arms folded behind his back as he shifted to look around his teenage friends.

"And that must be Misses Xen," he said brightly. Lucrecia managed to snap out of her surprised stuper and smiled, bowing a fraction.

"Nice to meet you, King Mickey," she greeted quietly. She quickly straightened up and tilted her head at him. "You're friends with my son, aren't you?"

"Mom," Riku groaned, palming his face. Lucrecia ignored him as Mickey laughed and nodded.

"Yep!" he agreed. "And let me say that your son is a fine young man and a great conversationalist when he's not talkin' about the Darkness!"

Riku now looked scandalized. "King Mickey!"

Sora burst out laughing and Kairi quickly followed, Lucrecia snickering quietly as Riku paled. After getting over their little laughing fit, Mickey went on, suddenly serious.

"Misses Xen," he said quietly, gazing intently at Lucrecia, "would you mind comin' with me?"

"Just me?" Lucrecia asked quietly, glancing towards the suddenly-on-edge Riku. Mickey blinked once before he smiled.

"No, but you're the guest here! I'm just bein' polite."

Lucrecia smiled at him and nodded as Kairi snickered and the two teenage boys blinked.

"I think...I don't get it," Sora decided with a nod. Riku merely grunted as Mickey turned around and began walking towards the main computer area.

"So you guys're probably wonderin' what I found," Mickey began slowly.

"Yes, we are," Kairi agreed, frowning in confusion. "You said...you couldn't tell us in the letter...and that you found 'something we should see'. Right?"

"Yep!" Mickey nodded and glanced over his shoulder as they walked around the corner that overlooked the Heartless Manufactory. Lucrecia glanced over, clearly confused and a bit alarmed when she saw a Neoshadow dancing around down below, but it merely looked up at her and gave a deep bow before it disappeared. Mickey's voice distracted her before she could process what had just happened. "Well, more like a couple a 'somethings'. And 'someones', too, dependin' on how ya look at it."

"Huh?" Sora asked, blinking rapidly and completely stopping in his confusion. Riku rolled his eyes and quickly dragged his friend after Mickey, who had not noticed his pause.

"Y'see...I was workin' in here with Leon about a week ago," Mickey explained, walking into the computer room and pausing in front of the huge computer. He gazed up at the screen, putting a hand to his chin thoughtfully as his tail swished back and forth. "All of a sudden, we opened this file called 'Journal' and a buncha pop-ups appeared. We had Tron put 'em in order from oldest to latest and the first thing we saw..."

He died off here and shook his head, turning to face the group with a serious expression. "We have new information on Xehanort," he finally said, Lucrecia's eyes widening as Riku and Sora hissed in anger and Kairi let out a quiet whimper. "It seems...he had a fiancée."

Riku processed it first and his eyes went wide. He practically roared, "XEHANORT HAD A WHAT?!"

Mickey merely stared at him for a few moments before his gaze drifted towards Lucrecia, who was now confused as she glanced at the teens' reactions. "A fiancée, Riku. Xehanort had a fiancée."

"Like, a soon-to-be-wife?" Sora half-gasped, bug-eyed. Mickey continued to stare at Lucrecia, who started a silent conversation using only her eyes. Mickey shrugged before turning to Sora.

"Whelp," he said, beginning to pace back and forth, "the file was dated from nearly twenty-seven years ago, so we don't know if it went anywhere beyond that. But as soon as we read that--and Leon explained a few things for me--there were these Corridors of Darkness that opened up on the ceiling and a few...guests..._dropped in_."

Mickey smiled a bit at his apprent joke that no one got.

"King Mickey," Lucrecia said quietly, voice hardly loud enough for everyone to hear as they all turned to her. Her eyes were wide and she glanced around at the three teens in front of her before returning her gaze to the mouse king, looking like she was getting ready to cry. "What did Xehanort _do_? Why are these three so upset at the mention of his name? What...what happened?"

Mickey glanced curiously at the three teens, who merely adverted their glances. The King let out a low sigh before turning back to Lucrecia, frowning a bit. "Misses Xen," he began slowly, "Xehanort--"

"Yo, boss!" a familiar, surfer-ish voice called from nearby. Lucrecia's expression visibly brightened as Sora tensed and none other than Xigbar sauntered into the room, a series of files in one hand and a rather stupid grin on his face. He paused next to the little king, apparently unaware of the rest of the group, and waved the files around pointedly. "Where do ya want this? 'S one of the files we told ya about."

Mickey winced a bit, but managed to put a smile on his face, reaching upwards. Xigbar obidiently gave the small king what he was holding, instead sticking his hands on his hips and tilting his head to the side so that his greying ponytail slipped over his shoulder. Mickey continued to smile as he nodded up at Xigbar. "Thanks, Xigbar. I was just gunna ask ya about those when the guests left."

"Eh?" This was apparently news to Xigbar, since he visibly perked up and turned around with a grin. "What gu..." He died off as he spotted Sora, his single eye narrowing a fraction before he grinned again. "Sora! 'Sup, little guy? You been a good boy since the whole savin'-the-universe thing?"

Sora opened his mouth to respond (probably with anger, if the way he was holding his hands in preperation for using a weapon was any indication), but before he could, Lucrecia gasped loudly.

"Braig?!" she cried, eyes wide as her hands flew to her mouth. Xigbar glanced up, blinked twice, then looked like he was about to fall over as his eye widened.

He sputtered for a few moments before he managed to exclaim, "_Lucrecia_?! Is that you?!"

Lucrecia merely exclaimed something to the effect of, "Yay!" and lunged forward, practically tackling Xigbar in a hug. "Braig, it's you! You're here! You're all right!!"

Xigbar stood there in stunned silence for a few moments before his grin broke out again three-fold and he returned the hug, almost crushing Lucrecia's ribcage in the process. "Luce! Man, I haven't seen ya in, like, twelve years! Where the hell've ya been?!"

"Where have _I_ been?" Lucrecia managed to release herself from the hug and arched an eyebrow pointedly, jabbing him in the chest with one of her fingers. "Where have _you_ been, Mister I'll-contact-you-as-soon-as-I-can?! I've waited nearly ten years for so much as a letter, and you guys just left me there! Do you have any idea how much I worried about you guys?"

Xigbar suddenly stiffened and his gaze drifted slowly to the side as his expression became masked. "Well, Luce...there's a reason for that," he mumbled quietly, rubbing the back of his head awkwardly. Lucrecia gazed at him pointedly and he gave a long, deep sigh. "Y'know that research we were workin' on?"

"About the Heart and its Darkness?" Lucrecia asked, eyes narrowed a fraction as she gazed at Xigbar. Realization struck and her eyes widened as she grabbed his left hand, the other dropping to his side. "Oh Braig. You...didn't."

Xigbar merely adverted his golden gaze as she lifted up her other hand, gently tracing the scar on his left cheek. "Then this...?" she mumbled quietly. Xigbar hesitated for only a moment.

"I...had to get Ienzo out of there," was all he could say, still staring somewhere over her left shoulder. Lucrecia's eyes widened and she leaned forward, dropping her hand.

"Wait, then...is he...?"

"He's breathing..."

Lucrecia visibly relaxed before she noticed something and her eyebrows furrowed. She again lifted her hand and instead placed it on Xigbar's chest. He made no move to stop her and after a few moments, she gave a sharp intake of breath.

"Braig," she said quietly, eyes widening as she lifted them up to look over his battle-worn face, "what happened to you?"

Xigbar slowly reached up with his free hand and gently took the pale hand on his chest, slowly lowering it as he continued to stare over Lucrecia's shoulder. "It...was an accident," he said quietly, finally moving his gaze to catch Lucrecia's. "Ienzo and Braig were in the experimentation room. They were just checking up on the exeriments. And then...someone opened the chamber with the...Heartless." He died off here and shook his head. "They survived...sort of. Y'know..." A wry, humorless smile crossed his face. "Nobodys can be humanoid if they have strong enough Hearts. Apparently they did."

"You're speaking in the third person."

Xigbar slowly shook his head, giving a soft sigh. "No, I'm not. I'm...not Braig anymore. I'm only half of the man he was." He gave another wry smile, although it was quickly extinguished. "Xigbar. That's my name now--Xigbar."

Lucrecia tilted her head for a few moments before realization hit her eyes, followed closely by a deep sadness. "Xigbar," she repeated quietly. She gave him a soft smile. "I'll remember it."

"Good," was all he said, smiling back.

"Ooooookay, I'm confused," Sora suddenly said, face screwed up in concentration as he put a hand to his chin thoughtfully.

"Sora," Kairi hissed, hitting her brunette friend over the head. He yelped and gave her a confused look, hands lifting to cover any future attacks.

"Kairi, what--?!"

"She obviously knew him before he became a Nobody," Riku said quietly, gazing at his mother in confusion. "But...what I want to know...is how."

"You never told 'im?" Xigbar asked, suddenly confused as he glanced towards Lucrecia. She gave him a look and he quickly shut up as she withdrew her hands from his.

"Shut up," she half-whispered. "I swear, if you say one thing to him...!"

"Does he at least know--?"

"He knows the name. Well...sort of."

"And Ienzo--?"

"No!" she immidiately exclaimed, eyes narrowed dangerously. "Xigbar, keep your big mouth shut for once in your life!"

"Non-life," he corrected with a stupid grin. It faultered at Lucrecia's pointed look as she folded her arms just under her chest and tapped her foot slowly. He laughed nervously and rubbed the back of his head. "Right...uh...bad joke. Sorry, Luce."

Lucrecia smiled and nodded before she suddenly looked concerned. "Wait, where are the others?"

Xigbar opened his mouth to answer, but another familiar voice--or rather, two voices--cut in.

"King Mickey!" Xaldin called, frowning as he walked into the room with a pair of thin-framed glasses perched low on his nose and he flipped through files he held in his hands. "We found more files, but our messanger was taking so long to get back, we decided to come investigate what kept him."

Lexaeus, who was trailing not far behind and holding many manila folders himself, merely grunted his agreement.

"Thanks, guys," Mickey said with another smile, having faded into the background when the conversation took place. Xaldin handed over his files as Lexaeus put his own down on the floor, leaving Mickey frowning at the large stack taller than he was. "Oh...this's goin' ta take a lotta readin', isn't it?"

"Sorry," Lexaeus mumbled, arms folded over his chest. Xaldin merely smirked and gave a bit of a shrug.

"I suppose so," he admitted as he pulled off his glasses and put them into a pocket in his cloak.

"Dilan?" Lucrecia suddenly asked, sounding amazed. "Aeleus?!"

The two froze and slowly looked over, Xaldin's jaw dropping and Lexaeus' eyes going wide in surprise when they saw the woman standing next to Xigbar, again shocked.

"Lucrecia?" they asked in unison. She cried out again in surprise and joy and ran up to them, grabbing first Xaldin, then Lexaeus ((MKL: -smirks- perverts!)) in a hug. They seemed too surprised to fake any emotion as she pulled back, looking at both of them.

"You two got...taller," she finally said, blinking in surprise. Xaldin grinned as Lexaeus smirked a bit.

"We worked out a lot while you were gone," Xaldin merely said. Lucrecia turned her gaze to Lexaeus and her smile returned.

"And you grew up!"

"I was only nineteen when you left," was the rumbled response, a smile of his own appearing as he folded his arms over his chest again. Lucrecia chuckled quietly and nodded before returning her gaze to Xaldin, a frown pulling at her lips.

"What's with your hair style?" she asked increculously. Xaldin looked like he wanted to die as Xigbar bursted out laughing and Lexaeus lifted a hand to smother a chuckle. "I mean, the hair itself is fine, but those sideburns are rediculous! And those eyebrows could use some waxing, too!"

Xaldin slowly turned red as he shot Xigbar a glare and raised his fist in a mock-fighting gesture, to which Xigbar merely laughed harder. Xaldin quickly gave up with a groan.

"It looked more intimidating with those..." he mumbled lamely. Lucrecia slowly arched an eyebrow and shook her head at that.

"Intimidating?" she snorted playfully in response, giving him a smile and an arched eyebrow as she stuck her hands on her hips. "Well, if you were going for the insane mountain-man look, it worked."

Xaldin was now red enough to rival Axel's hair--or, at the very least, it surpassed Marluxia's. "Er, well..."

He was spared from going on when Lucrecia's smile suddenly fell and sadness seemed to spark in her eye. She slowly took a step towards Xaldin and placed a hand on his chest, causing the tall man to go ramrod-straight, mouth opening slightly in surprise as he gazed helplessly at Xigbar. The elder merely sighed and shook his head, arms folded in front of his chest as Lucrecia looked up at Xaldin.

"You, too," she said quietly. She gazed towards Lexaeus as she dropped her hand and the look on his face merely confirmed her suspicions. "And you..." She looked between the two and took a step back, sighing and shaking her head. "And I'll assume you two changed your names accordingly."

"Lexaeus," was all the brunette could say, closing his eyes and shaking his head.

"It's Xaldin now," the 'mountain-man' admitted quietly, purple gaze drifting to the side. Lucrecia processed that for a few moments before she gave a wry smile.

"Well, at least they're easier to remember than Xigbar," she decided with a nod.

"Hey, I like my name!" Xigbar objected in a half-whining voice, pouting. Lucrecia merely shot him a smile.

"Just kidding. I like it, too."

Xigbar smirked at that and turned towards Xaldin and Lexaeus, who were still recovering.

"Hear that, Xaldin?" he taunted. He rubbed his nose with a rather stupid grin. "She said she liked it!"

"There's a first," Xaldin snorted playfully, smirking. Xigbar gasped dramatically and put a hand to his chest.

"Xaldin! You wound me so! Luce," he whined and turned his gaze to the woman, who was trying not to laugh, "can't ya do somethin'?"

"I can try teaching you manners again," she offered with a grin. "Just like I did when we first met...and you introduced yourself by dropping a waterballoon on my head."

Xigbar snickered at that. "Hey, it got you to remember me, right?"

Lucrecia laughed in response.

"Okay, now I'm MORE confused!" Sora complained, pouting again. Xaldin glanced over and smirked darkly.

"Sora," he greeted. "Nice to see you again. And how is the Beast doing?"

Sora glared in response. "Better than when you were polluting his mind with your tricks!"

Xaldin's smirk held fast as he folded his arms over his chest. "I was merely acting on orders from the higher-ups."

Sora growled.

"Lexaeus," Riku half-snarled, eyes narrowed at the man. Lexaeus glanced over, clearly unaffected.

"Riku," he rumbled in response. "I believe we got off on the wrong foot. Shall we start over?"

Riku merely continued to snarl, so Lexaeus shrugged in response.

"What did I miss?" Kairi asked blankly, glancing around.

"Whatever I did, hun," Lucrecia said, shaking her head with a slightly annoyed sigh.

"Whelp," Mickey suddenly said, breaking the tension in the room with a bright smile, "we should probably bring them down ta see what we found. I haven't told 'em anythin' yet."

"Really?" Xigbar asked with a grin, glancing pointedly at Sora. He paused a moment and tilted his head in confusion, folding his arms over his chest. "Say, just wonderin'--did ya figure out who Roxas is yet?"

"He knows about Roxas?" Lexaeus asked blankly.

"After your death," was all Xaldin said with a roll of his eyes.

"Who's Roxas?" Lucrecia cut in before Sora could respond. Everyone in the room turned to stare at her, with the exception of Riku, who merely shook his head.

"We'll explain later, Misses Xen," Kairi assured her with a slightly strained smile. Lucrecia stared blankly at her before sighing and putting a hand to her head.

"I'm getting too old for this..."

The others neglected to respond.


	4. Chapter 3

Kingdom Hearts:

The Truth Behind Xehanort

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Summary: Riku, Sora, and Kairi have finally returned to Destiny Islands after their two and a half year-long adventure across the universe. Things have finally settled down and everything has seemingly returned to the normal, boring way it was before. But when a letter from the King sets off a mysterious chain of events, can Riku save the one thing dearer to him than his friends? And better yet--what is this secret King Mickey has uncovered by going through the files on Ansem's computer...? "XEHANORT HAD A _WHAT_?!" "A fiancée, Riku. Xehanort had a fiancée." Pairings: Xehanort/OC; Suggested/Friendships: Any and All! (ie, Axel/RoxasSuggested, Zexion/LexaeusSuggested, Riku/SoraSuggested, Sora/KairiSuggested, Riku/Kairi/SoraSuggested, Zexion/DemyxSuggested, Xigbar/XaldinSuggested, etc.)

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Warnings: Major spoilers mixed in, bad language, hinted shonen-ai, possible/suggested (graphic?) character death, gruesome and multiple fight scenes, graphic torture, and possible (attempted?) (graphic?) suicide. Warnings are subject to change as story proceeds.

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Notes: 7-2-08 I don't own KH, FF(insert number here), any sort of anime/manga titles, or Disney, so anything related to them is not mine. I do, however, own my OCs, this storyline, and so on. Please excuse any problems with anyone's characters, as for about three of them, I truthfully have little to no experience and am going only on what I believe would be appropriate. And if you have any suggestions for anything, feel free to tell me! I enjoy flames, too--just not the perverted kind. X3

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**LUCRECIA'S JOURNAL, ENTRY THREE:**

**INFORMATION**

**((MKL: aka "and you thought luke skywalker had it bad!, part one"))**

"So where are we going, again?" Lucrecia asked slowly, clearly confused. Xigbar glanced over his shoulder and grinned.

"Don't worry 'bout it, Luce," he assured her. When she merely stared doubtfully at him, he sighed and rolled his visible eye. "Fine, fine. We're goin' to the Heartless Manufactory."

"The where?"

"The place where the Heartless were first created," Mickey explained solmnly. Xigbar, Xaldin, and Lexaeus winced, not escaping the notice of Lucrecia or the teens.

"Oh," was all Lucrecia said, frowning. She turned her attention to her son, who was staring at the floor and apparently thinking hard about something. She blinked once when his form was briefly overshadowed by another, but when she opened her eyes, it was gone. But that form was...so familiar...

"Good of you to join us, Xigbar, Xaldin, and Lexaeus," a voice sneered from before them as the group suddenly paused on the stairway. "I was just coming to make sure none of you were killed."

Lucrecia's eyes widened and she suddenly smiled, shoving her way to the front.

"Even!" she cried, smile wide enough to split her face. Vexen jerked a bit in surprise and whirled around to stare at her, his own icy-green eyes widening.

"Lucrecia?" he asked rather stupidly. "Lucrecia Xen?"

Lucrecia merely smiled and took a few steps forward, giving him a hug. He stiffened a bit, but awkwardly patted her back in return, flushing a bit and shooting a glare at the snickering Nobodys.

"Even, it's great to see you again!" she said happily, pulling back and flashing him a smile. He shifted uncomfortably and her smile faultered. "Oh...right. It's...not Even anymore, is it?"

Vexen merely lifted a shoulder in response, causing Lucrecia to tilt her head. "So what's your new name?" she asked, curious. Vexen hesitated only a moment.

"...Vexen," he said slowly, watching carefully for her reaction. To his surprise, she laughed.

"S-sorry," she said when she was done, smiling at him and lifting a hand to stiffle any future giggles, "but...it sounds...odd!"

Vexen slowly started to flush again at that.

"That's what we told him," Xaldin said with a smirk.

"But he insisted," Xigbar went on, snickering.

"It isn't bad," Lucrecia quickly assured him, dropping her hand to clasp both behind he back, "just...different. I like it."

"Did you hear that, Xigbar--she likes it," Xaldin mocked. Xigbar shot him a playful glare.

"Shut up," he grumbled, folding his arms over his chest childishly. Lexaeus smiled a bit at the display.

"What are you doing here, Lucrecia?" Vexen asked suddenly, changing the subject as his eyes narrowed a fraction. Lucrecia blinked at him as he went on. "I was told that you were going to remain in Destiny Islands until we were sure the experiments were not going to harm anyone."

"And we see where that got us," Xaldin mumbled under his breath so only Riku and Kairi could hear. The two glanced at him curiously, but were saved from responding when Lucrecia gave a long, whithering sigh.

"My son," she gestured behind her to Riku, causing all of the Nobodys to freeze in looks of varying degrees of shock, "recieved a letter from King Mickey," she moved her gesture to the small mouse, who avoided everyone's eyes. "It said...it said that I needed to come. And that it involved 'Xeha and everyone'."

"What?" Lexaeus suddenly exclaimed as the Nobodys turned to stare at Mickey. The small mouse stayed silent.

"King Mickey, why would you do that?!" Xaldin demanded, eyes narrowed and a snarl on his lips.

"Dude, that's SO not cool," Xigbar groaned.

"You merely got her hopes up," Vexen growled, glaring at Mickey as the room's temperature quite literally dropped twenty degrees. "What were you expecting to tell her?!"

"About what?" Lucrecia asked, blinking in confusion. She glanced towards the teenagers in the room, hoping one of them might have an answer. "What are they talking about?"

"I have no idea," Sora said with a shrug. Kairi nodded her agreement.

"Something happened to my father?" Riku offered quietly, tilting his head in confusion. The Nobodys froze and exchanged looks before turning to Lucrecia, who pretended not to notice. However, after a few moments, she threw up her hands in defeat.

"What?" she demanded, arching an eyebrow. "He knows his nickname! I told him a few things! Why are you looking at me like that?"

"Nickname?" Xigbar repeated, looking vaguely doubtful.

"Yes. Xeha. And I said he was a scientist, and that he was working under one of the greatest minds of this planet, and that he would come back..." She died off and swallowed before shaking her head and gazing at them pointedly. "He would come back as soon as he could."

"Does he at least know of--?" Xaldin asked, frowning.

"No," Lucrecia cut in, eyes narrowed dangerously. She paused a moment and, sounding much less confident, added, "I...don't think so. I might have mentioned him once, but...I don't think so."

"Confused!" Sora complained again, this time blocking Kairi when she went to hit him. He grinned triumphantly, then was hit from behind by Riku.

"Let them talk," the eldest of the three said, gazing pointedly at the brunette. Sora did not reply, instead grumbling something and rubbing the back of his head in annoyance.

"You could tell him now, so he will not be as surprised," Vexen offered.

"About the little one," Lexaeus added, giving Vexen a pointed look. The blonde merely nodded his agreement.

"Not until I see him," Lucrecia said, eyes narrowed dangerously. She looked at them pointedly as they just stared, obviously trying to comprehend that. "Well? Is someone going to lead the way or do I have to start screaming?"

"I'll lead!" Xaldin quickly offered, practically portaling to the front of the group and walking briskly downstairs. Lucrecia smiled innocently.

"Thanks, Xal." Xaldin did not respond as she began walking, sticking close to Vexen. "And as for you."

"Huh?" Vexen asked rather stupidly, brow furrowed in confusion. He seemed to be doing that a lot with Lucrecia around, something which was obviously out of character.

"Do you have any idea how worried your wife was the last time I spoke to her?!" she cried, eyes narrowed dangerously. Vexen flinched as Xigbar innocently ducked back to trail at the back of the group with King Mickey, who still had not responded to anyone's questions. Riku gazed at them doubtfully as Sora and Kairi exchanged confused looks, Lucrecia going on. "My name-alike was in Traverse Town, and she had given up hope that you were even alive! It took me nearly a week to get her out of her self-induced slump!!"

Vexen hunched his shoulders a fraction, giving the illusion that he was a child being repremanded by his parent.

"And you," she whirled on Xaldin, eyes narrowed dangerously, "your girlfriend was begging me to help her try and find someone who had seen you alive! The poor girl looked ready to tear her hair out by the roots!!"

Xaldin visibly flinched and adverted his gaze, leaving Lucrecia to completely skip over Lexaeus (who was frowning and shaking his head) and instead turn her sights on Xigbar, who was still hiding at the back of the pack. He caught Lucrecia's piercing stare and hestitated a few moments before slowly nodding his understanding to the silent accusation in her eyes.

"Well?" She turned her gaze around the three men as Lexaeus clearly thanked any gods out there that he was being spared from the accusations. "Have any of you contacted your families since this," she gestured wildly at them, "happened? A letter? A phone call? Something?!"

They all avoided her gaze, and just when she was about to start yelling, Xaldin meekly called, "We're here."

Lucrecia smiled at that, all trace of anger seemingly gone as she nodded her thanks.

"These are the great founding members of Organization XIII?" Riku snorted, arching an eyebrow as he folded his arms over his chest. "I'm not impressed. They're getting verbally abused by my _mother_ and aren't fighting back!"

"Your mom's scary," Sora decided quietly. "That might be why.

"She's being a mom," Kairi whispered back. "She's overly-protective and wants them to get back together with their...families."

"The mother of Organization XIII?" Riku offered quietly, smirking a bit. Kairi and Sora snickered in response.

"Riku," Lucrecia suddenly said, frowning a bit at him from at the bottom of the stairs, "aren't you coming?"

Riku quickly put on a smile and nodded. "Yeah, Mom! Be there in a sec!"

"Your mom's pretty cool, though," Sora went on, unaware that Mickey and Xigbar were listening in. "I mean, she's kinda tamed four members of the Organization in, like, fifteen minutes."

"Actually, little dude," Xigbar piped up with a grin as the teenagers jolted at his sudden enterance into the conversation, "she had thirteen years to do that. She lived her before, y'know. Hung out with us a lot."

"She lived in Radient Garden?" Riku asked incredulously. Xigbar nodded silently, then glanced up, dropping his voice to a whisper.

"I can't tell ya any more than that, but if ya ask, I'm pretty sure she'll explain."

Kairi opened her mouth to question that, but before she could, they made it to Lucrecia. The conversation screeched to a hault.

"Okay, we're here," Lucrecia said slowly, gazing pointedly at the four Nobodys. "Now where's Ienzo?"

"He's going through the files," Lexaeus said slowly. Lucrecia turned pointedly to him.

"And where are those?"

Lexaeus pointed towards the only doorway, which lead to the spot where Lucrecia had seen the Heartless. She hestiated only a moment before boldly striding through, pausing when she got into the area. She saw a head of silver-blue hair in the middle of the room, files scattered all around, and she noticed that his head was tipped forward so that his hair covered his face. However, despite the fact that Lucrecia had not seen him for nearly sixteen years, Lucrecia knew in her Heart who it was.

"Ienzo?" she called meekly. The figure stiffened and slowly raised his head, hair still covering the right half of his face and a single visible purple-blue eye widening in surprise when he saw the woman in the doorway. Lucrecia felt tears form in her eyes as she lunged forward, dimly aware of others in the doorway behind her. "Ienzo!"

Zexion was too shocked to respond, letting Lucrecia practically tackle him as she cradled him close, his face positioned between her breasts as she sobbed and stroked his hair, falling to her knees so she could do so.

"Ienzo, Ienzo...oh my little Ienzo, it's you...I know, it's you...!"

"M..." Zexion began, voice hardly more than a whisper. He pulled back his ashen face enough to stare up at the familiar, yet unfamiliar features of the woman who was holding him. "M...Mo...ther...?"

"_What_ did he just say?" Sora gasped in the doorway as Lucrecia sobbed and nodded, still holding Zexion close to her. He was completely ignored.

"Ienzo, it's me," she agreed between breaths, tears still running down her face in rivers. "It IS me. Oh Shiva, I...I was so worried! I missed you! Oh Shiva, I missed you so much!"

Zexion was still too stunned to reply, gazing over her shoulder and not really seeing the others standing there.

"M-Mother?" he repeated. Suddenly it seemed to hit him and he pulled back from the hug, staring up at Lucrecia in shock. "Y-you're...here? Now?"

"Yes," she quickly said, a watery smile on her face as the tears continued to fall. "Yes, Ienzo. It's me. I'm here, right now. I'm here..."

"That's touching," Xigbar mumbled to Xaldin. The younger of the two rolled his eyes and gave his old friend a look.

"Xigbar, shut up," he muttered, annoyed. Xigbar, for once, did as he was told.

"You've grown," Lucrecia said quietly, gently stroking the left side of Zexion's face. She continued to smile at him and closed her eyes, shaking her head before opening them again to gaze at Zexion with the kind of love only a mother could show. "You've grown so much...and yet..." She suddenly looked confused for a few moments. "...you're...supposed to be..."

"Twenty-six," Zexion confirmed softly, gaze drifting to the side. "Twenty-seven this November."

"Then...why?" Almost as soon as the question left her mouth, Lucrecia gasped and quickly felt at Zexion's chest. The still-teenager's ribcage rose and fell in time with his breath, but there was no steady thump beneath that. Lucrecia felt tears begin to form in her eyes again as she pulled Zexion to her again, tears once more falling down her face. "Oh Ienzo...I...I'm so sorry." Vexen seemed to wince from behind her, but only Kairi seemed to notice. "I should have been here...I...maybe I could have done...something. Anything..."

"There was nothing." Zexion's voice was slightly muffled, but Lucrecia heard him none the less. He made no move to pull himself from the embrace, but at the same time, he also made no move to add to it. "If you had stayed, you would have either been turned into a Heartless or sent to another planet. There was nothing you could have done."

Lucrecia shook her head at that, continuing to hold her elder son close. "No," she mumbled, closing her eyes again, "that would have been something. At least I would have gone down fighting."

Zexion hesitated a moment at that before slowly pulling back from the embrace, his single visible eye locking with his mother's almost-identical ones, the other underneath his hair undoubtedly doing the same. "No," he said firmly. Lucrecia blinked open her eyes in surprise and pulled back a fraction, noting the seriousness of Zexion's expression. "Because you were not here, you did not end up being...this." He grimanced a bit at that and uncontiously lifted a hand to where his Heart should have been, although he did not seem to notice that he had done so. "And that's more than a lot of the residents here can say."

Lucrecia stared at him for a few moments...and then she smiled, climbing to her feet and dragging Zexion with her. Her child nearly fell over as she did, caught off-guard, but Lucrecia managed to catch him. She continued to smile as she gently cupped his face, then quietly asked, "And your name? According to Xigbar, everyone has changed their names...what's yours?"

Another moment of hesitation from her son. "...Zexion."

After thinking it over for a few moments, Lucrecia smiled and nodded. "I like it. It suits you."

Zexion's lips quirked up in an almost-smile.

"Ah, that reminds me!" she suddenly said, turning around and quickly dragging Zexion over to the group. "Zexion, you remember your brother, I hope."

"Riku," Zexion suddenly said, eye narrowing a fraction. Riku growled.

"Zexion," he responded coldly. Lucrecia was immidiately confused and glanced between the two, still keeping a tight grip on her elder son's hand.

"...did I...miss something?" she asked after a few moments, tilting her head. "I...wasn't aware Riku even knew you existed."

"Little brothers tend to look over obvious similarities when they meet new 'friends'," Zexion merely said, smirking a bit. Riku glowered at him before turning to his mother, expression quickly changing to shock.

"I have a _brother_?" he asked incredulously. He shot a look at Zexion and added, "And it's _Zexion_?!"

Zexion suddenly appeared surprised, glancing up at Lucrecia with a quirked eyebrow. "You never told him?"

"I was...waiting until you and your father could come," she admitted quietly. Zexion continued to stare at her for a few moments before turning his attention back to Riku, frowning a bit.

"That would explain a lot," he mumbled quietly.

"Mom," Riku said, eyes narrowed as he gave Zexion a look like the Nobody was a rabid dog, "did you conviniently forget to tell me something else?"

"What do you mean?" Lucrecia asked, brow furrowed in confusion as she grabbed a handcerchief from her pocket and wiped the drying tears from her cheeks with her free hand. The other was refusing to let Zexion go, not that he seemed to mind.

"Oh, I don't know!" Riku threw up his hands in exasperation and looked about ready to die. "That Ansem the Wise is my dad or something!"

"Great-grandfather, on mom's side," Zexion said with a smirk. Riku gave him a deadpan look.

"...you're not serious."

Zexion's smirk widened. "Perfectly so."

"..." was Riku's inteligent response. He turned around and pinched the bridge of his nose, closing his eyes and letting out a long, low breath. He took a few moments to calm down before turning back around and giving his mother a pointed look. "...I think it's time you told me who my father is before I kill myself."

"You might anyway," Zexion said with a half-shrug. Riku shot him a glare.

"Who asked you?!"

"Riku!" Lucrecia suddenly exclaimed, eyes narrowed dangerously. Riku winced at the tone of voice, along with everyone else in the room with the exception of Mickey. "Don't speak that way! I don't care what might have happened in the past--and if I knew, I have no doubt Zexion would be as much to blame as you are, if not more so, since he's the elder sibling--as long as I'm here, you will not speak that way! Understand?"

"Yes, Mom," he mumbled, eyes dropping to study his shoes. She seemed satisfied and instead turned to Zexion, frowning.

"And as for you." Zexion's brow furrowed in confusion as he wondered what, exactly, he had done wrong. "You are not helping. Keep your comments to yourself!"

"Yes, Mother," he responded rather meekly. Again Lucrecia seemed satisfied and smiled innocently at them.

"Now get along, will you?" she asked innocently. "In the meantime, I believe Sora has a story to tell."

"Eh?!" Sora immidiately cried, eyes wide. Lucrecia gave him a pointed look.

"Riku's refusing to tell me what's happened during your absense, and Kairi has been on Destiny Islands for at least a year of it--that much I know for a fact. These guys," she jabbed her thumb towards the apprentances, who were conversing in tones too quiet for anyone else to hear, "probably wouldn't be able to tell me the whole story. So that leaves you."

Sora opened and closed his mouth a few times, then turned to gaze hopelessly at Riku, who merely gave him an "I'm busy here, leave me alone" look before returning to his glaring at Zexion, who was staring back apathetically in return.

"Fine," Sora sighed, closing his eyes and rubbing his nose. "But I don't know everything, so I'm gunna need some help...especially with Riku's part."

"I'm not saying anything," Riku said, eyes narrowed at Sora. The brunette frowned, but did not press his friend.

"Okay, so, it all started when we wanted to build this raft so we could explore the worlds..."

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Lucrecia stayed silent through the whole explination, listening intently as Sora spun his story. Riku had caved when Sora said that he had been sleeping for a year and finally told her what happened there, with the Nobodys cutting in to correct biased statements when it came to them. Every time they mentioned "Xehanort", Lucrecia visibly winced and Zexion immidiately squeezed her hand, but Kairi was, as usual, the only one to notice.

"...and then we came back home," Sora finished with a smile. "The end!"

Silence followed his ending as Lucrecia slowly closed her eyes, breathing deeply. She processed everything she had just heard, trying to take out the obvious bias in some parts of the story, but she was having a harder time dealing with the "Xehanort" parts than the whole thing with Riku. She knew her son meant no harm, but to think that Xehanort...

"...and Xemnas?" she finally said, opening her eyes and scanning the faces of the Nobodys there. "Is he back, too?"

They all hesitated and, to her surprise, it was Lexaeus who answered.

"Yes," he said quietly. "But...he's still recovering from the wounds he recieved in the fight with Sora and Riku."

"Xemnas is back?!" Sora cried out, eyes wide as he lunged to his feet. He had sat down when Riku began explaining what happend in Castle Oblivion, not that Sora remembered any of it.

"He's in no condition to fight," Xaldin immidiately said, eyes narrowed dangerously at the children. Sora merely glared in response.

"He was in perfect condition to try and kill us after capturing Sora," Riku growled dangerously, coming to his friend's defense.

"You will have to go through us before you come within a mile of his room," Vexen sneered in response, eyes narrowed dangerously.

"Guys, calm!" Kairi quickly exclaimed, moving to stand between the two groups with her hands raised.

"Yeah, really, dudes," Xigbar went on with a serious expression, joining her. "We don't need infightin' before we even tell 'em why they came. Least wait until we're settled in and they've got a chance to think over everythin' for that."

"Agreed," Lexaeus said with a nod.

"I'm not happy with this," Sora complained, eyeing Xaldin with clear annoyance.

"Sora," Kairi groaned as Xaldin protested loudly.

"Xaldin!" Xigbar added, giving his friend a pointed look.

"Everyone BE _QUIET_!" Lucrecia suddenly shouted. The room fell into silence as she stared at them, eyes narrowed dangerously. "If I hear one more word about this, I will _personally_ settle the disagreement."

Zexion watched with a slight smirk as everyone cowered, now finally pulling his hand from Lucrecia's grip to fold his arms over his chest. "Perhaps the King should explain why you were called here," he offered quietly. Everyone obidiently turned to look at Mickey, who had been watching everyone intently during the whole exchange. He blinked in surprise at suddenly being remembered.

"Welp," he said slowly, blinking again as the others stared at him, "you guys know 'bout the Organization returnin', but we're still tryin' to find out why..."

"I thought Xemnas already explained this," a voice said smoothly from the staircase. Kairi whimpered and hid behind Sora as the brunette growled and summoned his Oathkeeper Keyblade, glaring at Saïx as he strode dramatically into the room. He ignored the teens and instead focused his gaze on Lucrecia, a wry smile falling into place on his face. "Lucrecia."

"Sïa!" she exclaimed, blinking rapidly in surprise before she grinned. She quickly moved over and grabbed him in a hug, which he oddly returned. "It's good to see you again!"

He merely smirked as she pulled back, his height (he was more than a head taller than her) making her seem almost miniscule in appearence.

"I see you're doing well," he responded with a nod. She smiled in response before said smile slowly fell and she tilted her head.

"Sïa, you, too...?" she asked quietly. When he seemed confused, she gently poked his chest, and he winced a bit.

"...yes."

"And your new name?"

"Saïx," he said stiffly. Lucrecia smiled and nodded.

"Saïx," she repeated slowly, testing the word. "I like it. A lot."

"Awww, that's no fair!" Xigbar complained, pouting childishly as Xaldin smirked at him.

"Seems you're not so special anymore, Xigbar," he snickered. Xigbar stuck his tongue out childishly in return.

"What did Xemnas explain?" Riku asked slowly, standing protectively in front of Kairi. Saïx glanced over and frowned a bit.

"He explained that Nobodys can never truely die," he said, voice oddly soft and, if you wanted to push it, reassuring.

"I remember that," Sora admitted, still staring at Saïx with suspicion as he dismissed his Keyblade. However, he stayed tense. "He said that 'Nothingness is eternal.' That, just like Light and Dark, Nothing will live forever."

Saïx nodded slowly. "In essense, we are the very definition of Nothingness. I believe it was Yen Sid that said, 'Nobodys do not truely exist at all'. And because we do not exist, we do not die. The same thing goes for Heartless, the definition of the Dark, and the Keyblades, the definition of the Light."

"So wait," Riku suddenly said, eyes widening in surprise, "Xehanort's Heartless..."

The ex-apprentances-plus-Saïx-and-Lucrecia gave a group wince.

"Would still be alive," Saïx confirmed. "Not nessicarily still inside of you, but he would still be alive, somewhere."

"And we've gotta report from Twilight Town that there's a super-strong warrior that's got a Heartless-looking creature followin' it," Mickey went on solmnly. "That's why I called. You three 'cause you're the Keyblade Weilders, and Lucrecia because..."

He died off and gazed curiously at Lucrecia, who smiled slightly. "Because I wanted to reunite my family again," she decided to say. She gave Zexion and Riku a pointed look. "Even if they've been cruel to each other without my knowing it."

"He was the one being cruel," Riku mumbled rather childishly. Zexion merely rolled his eyes.

"I have a question," Sora suddenly said, frowning. The others all turned to look at him as he eyed the Nobodys before him with suspicion. "Why're you guys helping us? I mean, you were against us for more than a year and a half..."

"Because we wanted to regain our Hearts, and we thought you wouldn't help if you knew that," Lexaeus said quietly.

"Truthfully, we destroyed a lot of world, and we're not proud of it," Xigbar went on, frowning a bit. "But we wanna fix it now."

"We're willing to put aside our differences," Xaldin finished with a nod, staring pointedly at Sora. "And besides, Lord Superior insisted. He wanted to try and fix things with the universe and the overall feelings when it comes to Nobodys."

"It seems you said or did something that affected him," Saïx admitted. He was gazing curiously at the two who had defeated his master, eyes narrowed a fraction. "Whatever it was, he suddenly decided that saving the universe was more important than trying to regain our Hearts. And if he has decided that, I will follow him."

"As will I," Vexen admitted, feeling vaguely forgotten ((MKL: oops...he was until i re-read the chapter. XP))

"We all will," Zexion added softly. He was gazing at the stairway, determination flashing in his visible eye. "To the ends of the universe."

There was a solmn group nod. Lucrecia merely smiled and nodded as well, Sora, Riku, and Kairi seeming not quite understanding what the force behind the statement was, but not quite as aprehensive about the situation, either.

"I'll forgive them," Kairi suddenly said, gazing pointedly at Saïx. The blue-haired man blinked once, then gave a half-smile, half-smirk and nodded.

"I guess," Sora said with obvious uncertainty. He scowled suddenly and folded his arms over his chest, gazing pointedly at Xaldin. "But I want you guys to agree that I can kick your...er...butts should you do anything to make me think you're going to hurt someone on our side!"

Xaldin merely smirked.

"We agree," Vexen said, shooting Xaldin a pointed look. The younger rolled his eyes, but indeed nodded his agreement.

"...I trust Sora's judgement," Riku reluctantly said. "But I'm still a bit reluctant. And if any of you come anywhere near my mother with any sort of malicious intent, I swear--"

"No need to worry about that," Zexion cut in. "I am sure everyone here respects Mother just as much as we do."

There was a series of enthusiastic nods from the Nobodys present (save Vexen, who merely smirked).

"Numbers Eight through Thir...Twelve are unaccounted for," Saïx suddenly said, frowning a bit. "If they agree, I believe they should be given the chance to join us as well."

"Here, here!" Mickey said with a smile. "I'm all for it!"

"Hn," was Riku's simple response, coupled with an eye-roll for added effect.

"I'm sure they'll willingly agree, if they're anything like you six," Lucrecia said with a smile. The Nobodys merely shook their heads and/or smirked in response.

"Whelp," Mickey suddenly said, smiling again as he clasped his arms behind his back, "I think it's gettin' late. These guys," he gestured towards the Destiny Island-ites, "have got a lotta things ta process. Can one of you guys show them to some rooms?"

"I'll do it," Lexaeus offered quietly, raising his hand. He paused and nodded his head at the group. "This way."

Sora and Kairi hesitated only a moment before following, Kairi with surprisingly less weariness than Sora. Then again, Sora did have Roxas influencing him to some degree, and Roxas was on high-alert around other Nobodys from the moment he entered the Organization. Riku and his mother lingered behind a moment.

"I'll come in a bit," Lucrecia assured her son with a smile. Riku hesitated again, eyes darting around to gaze at all of his former enemies, so Lucrecia laughed quietly and reached forward, pulling Riku into a hug. "Good night, Ri-Ri," she mumbled into his hair, planting a soft kiss there.

"Mom," Riku grumbled, only half-resisting as the Nobodys snickered at him. Lucrecia chuckled quietly and let him go, watching as he jogged off to catch up with his friends, pausing only a moment to wave a goodbye before disappearing from sight.

Silence echoed through the room until the footsteps of the four drifted away. Lucrecia was suddenly all-business.

"Where's Xeha," she said seriously, gazing at the Nobodys in the room with narrowed eyes. They all looked hesitant, so she repeated the question with a bit more force. "Where. Is. My. Xeha."

"...I'm...not sure if it's a good idea to let you see him," Xaldin said quietly, frowning as the shadow of worry shined in his eyes.

"Dude, as if!" Xigbar snorted, rolling his eye. "She can handle it." He paused a moment and his expression softened into a smile as he nodded at his old friend. "'Sides, she's probably worried sick about the guy. Hasn't seen 'im for nearly sixteen years."

Lucrecia smiled her thanks. "Mother," Zexion said quietly, frowning. Lucrecia glanced down and smiled, taking her child's hand in both of her own.

"I can handle it, Zexion," she assured him softly, gently squeezing for emphasis. He stared at her for a few moments before sighing quietly and turning his gaze to the side.

"I...cannot stop you."

Lucrecia smiled and turned towards Vexen, who looked a bit out-of-place all of a sudden. "Vexen, would you mind taking me to see him?" she asked calmly. Vexen hesitated, eyes flickering to the side a moment.

"I--I supose I could," he muttered, clearly a bit unnerved by something.

"I will take you," Saïx said suddenly, giving Vexen a pointed look. The blonde shot him a thankful one in return.

"Vexen worked on his injuries," Zexion whispered to his mother, who had to bend forward a fraction to hear him. "He...seems reluctant to return."

"I see," Lucrecia mumbled, nodding. She smiled in understanding at Vexen before letting go of Zexion's hand and taking a step forward. Determination flashed across her face. "Lead the way, Saïx."

The blue-haired man nodded silently and turned, starting up the stairs. Casting only one more look over her shoulder to smile at her old friends and give them a breif wave, she turned back around and disappeared up the stairway.

Silence again followed their leaving.

"Do you think she can handle it?" Vexen asked, frowning in mock concern.

"She can," Zexion assured the elder man, nodding with a seriousness that looked odd on his young face. "She will."

"She's a strong woman," Mickey said with a smile, reminding the remaining ex-apprentances that he was still there. He took a step forward and gazed after her, remembering the way that she took the whole story of Kingdom Hearts in stride. "She'll be fine. 'Sides, she's Riku's mom. She's definately stronger than she looks, right?"

"That depends," Xaldin merely said with a sigh.

No one had the Heart ((MKL: -smirks- pun intended.)) to ask him what he meant.


	5. Chapter 4

Kingdom Hearts:

The Truth Behind Xehanort

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Summary: Riku, Sora, and Kairi have finally returned to Destiny Islands after their two and a half year-long adventure across the universe. Things have finally settled down and everything has seemingly returned to the normal, boring way it was before. But when a letter from the King sets off a mysterious chain of events, can Riku save the one thing dearer to him than his friends? And better yet--what is this secret King Mickey has uncovered by going through the files on Ansem's computer...? "XEHANORT HAD A _WHAT_?!" "A fiancée, Riku. Xehanort had a fiancée." Pairings: Xehanort/OC; Suggested/Friendships: Any and All! (ie, Axel/RoxasSuggested, Zexion/LexaeusSuggested, Riku/SoraSuggested, Sora/KairiSuggested, Riku/Kairi/SoraSuggested, Zexion/DemyxSuggested, Xigbar/XaldinSuggested, etc.)

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Warnings: Major spoilers mixed in, bad language, hinted shonen-ai, possible/suggested (graphic?) character death, gruesome and multiple fight scenes, graphic torture, and possible (attempted?) (graphic?) suicide. Warnings are subject to change as story proceeds.

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Notes: 7-2-08 I don't own KH, FF(insert number here), any sort of anime/manga titles, or Disney, so anything related to them is not mine. I do, however, own my OCs, this storyline, and so on. Please excuse any problems with anyone's characters, as for about three of them, I truthfully have little to no experience and am going only on what I believe would be appropriate. And if you have any suggestions for anything, feel free to tell me! I enjoy flames, too--just not the perverted kind. X3

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**LUCRECIA'S JOURNAL, ENTRY FOUR:**

**PROMISE**

**((MKL: aka "and you thought luke skywalker had it bad!, part two"))**

"The Darkness...

"It consumes all.

"It is ultimate power.

"Ultimate corruption.

"And yet there always seems to be a glimmer of Light.

"Stupid mortals, thinking they can ever return.

"They should realize...

"No matter how much they run...

"No matter how well they hide...

"No matter how hard they try...

"No matter how they resist...

"When they turn to the Dark...

"...they will always...

"...Return..."

--

"...and yet...somehow...

"...despite knowing all of that...

"My doubt remains."

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Lucrecia made no attempt at conversation as Saïx silently led her though the halls of her grandfather's old labs. The corridors that they had passed through to go into the lab seemed even more sinister with the lack of three cheery teens and the addition of a single black-cloaked figure that made absolutely no noise as he walked down the halls. Lucrecia could not help but shudder as a voice in her mind asked whether he even breathed before mentally repremanding herself.

This was _Sïa_. Her old friend Sïa, the one who Xeha had said he would entrust with his life--and apparently did. She would _not_ think that way about him.

"Are we getting close?" Lucrecia asked, voice echoing down the empty hallways as she attempted to break the silence. Saïx glanced over his shoulder and nodded.

"Just down this hallway," he said quietly, gesturing towards the hall that Lucrecia distantly realized led the way to the only bedroom next to the labs. She briefly wondered why he was there before deciding that it had something to do with his injuries and returning to the conversation.

"How..." She paused and swallowed, gazing intently at the back of Saïx's head. "How bad is he?"

Saïx hesitated only a moment. "...your son and his friend did quite a number on him, but he will survive."

Lucrecia could not help but smile despite the grave situation. That was what she had always loved about Sïa--he was always willing to tell the truth, no matter what the reprocutions.

"Thank you," she said suddenly. Saïx paused in front of a doorway and turned to face her, brow furrowed as she smiled at him.

"For what?" he asked softly. Lucrecia hesitated for only a moment before smiling gently and reaching out to take one of his hands, realizing it was smooth and uncalloused despite the fact that he was a battle-hardened warrior.

"For taking care of him."

Saïx's gaze slowly drifted to the side. "I...I had help."

"But still," she said, continuing to smile, "you took care of him, help or not. So thanks."

A moment of silence.

"He's in here," Saïx said quietly, pulling his hand from her grasp and taking a step back, bowing his head a fraction. Lucrecia's smile slowly fell and she turned towards the door, hesitating only a moment before gripping the handle tightly and carefully opening the door, stepping in and leaving it open behind her.

The room was simple, all white, with wooden cabinates and marble counters along the wall on her right. There was a single window high up on the wall before her, and machines beeped quietly nearby, but none of that mattered. The only thing that mattered to Lucrecia was the queen sized bed shoved into the back-left corner--more specifically, the man laying in it.

Lucrecia froze as she stared at the sleeping, bandaged man whose chest hardly moved, eyes closed and a default, apathetic expression on his face. Lucrecia took a single step forward, tears once more welling up in her eyes, but she forced them away and instead walked over to the bed. She choaked back a sob when she saw the way that his chest was completely wrapped in white bandages, the blankets falling around his waist and covering his legs doing nothing to hide his well-muscled, bare, bandage-wrapped arms. He even had a large strip of cloth covering the whole of his right cheek, three thin trails of blood leaking through, although they were partially hidden by his shoulder-length, silver hair.

Lucrecia's hands went to her mouth as she continued to stare at the sleeping form, which twitched a bit as his head turned towards her as if uncontiously sensing that she was there. Somehow, she got the feeling that he did.

"Xeha..." she mumbled, quickly rushing to his side. The tears finally fell again even as she willed them to stop, thin trails of salty wetness slowly falling down her cheeks from the corners of her eyes. She reached out and gripped Xemnas' calloused hand tightly in her own, shaking her head. "Oh Xeha. I...oh Shiva, Xeha, why? Why did you do this to yourself?"

She reached out with her free right hand and gently ran her fingers down his unwounded cheek, choaking back another sob as she rested her hand against the slightly warm skin. He still looked so young...according to her timeline, he was only thirty-seven when the events took place. Mentally he would be nearly fourty-six years old, but he would forever be thirty-seven physically. She closed her eyes a few moments and listened to the steady beep of machinery next to her, distantly aware that it must have been specifically designed to moniter the lungs instead of the Heart. The apprentances had always been so resourceful...

"...Lucr...ecia...?" a familiar, slightly raspy voice asked quietly next to her. Lucrecia's eyes snapped open and she gasped despite herself, blinking rapidly. Familiar reddish-gold eyes stared back at her--a bit duller than they had once been, and a bit more red than gold, but they were still as wonderful as she remembered.

"Xehanort," was all she could say in response.

Silence.

Suddenly it hit and Lucrecia let the tears fall again, eyes widening as she leaned foreward a fraction. "Xehanort!"

"Lucrecia," Xemnas mumbled, sounding a bit out of it. Judging by the way that he seemed to only half-see her, his beautiful eyes slightly glazed over, he must have been deeply medicated. He raised a shaky arm and cupped the hand on his cheek with his own, larger one, gazing distantly at her. "Lucrecia...you're...here."

"Of course," she quickly told him, a watery smile appearing on her face as she squeezed his left hand re-assuringly. "I came to see you, Xehanort. You...never returned for me."

Xemnas looked like he only heard about half of that, but somehow got the gist of it. "It wasn't...safe yet."

Lucrecia shook her head rapidly, a wry laugh falling from her thick, naturally-red lips. "You act as though I would care." She leaned forward and gently captured his lips with her own, putting as much feeling into the action as she could to make up for the fact that, judging by what she had heard, he was unable to. He responded accordingly to her advance, but it seemed...almost automatic. Like it was more instinct than feeling--which it truthfully was. She pulled back slowly, holding his lower lip between her teeth for a few moments before reluctantly letting go. She nearly laughed again at the needy look on his face, like he wanted more, but had no way to communicate that. "I would travel the universe for you, destroy a thousand worlds to see your face for even an instant. Xehanort...I love you. I always have. I always will."

Xemnas' expression fell and he looked like he wanted to jump off a cliff. "I wish...I could say...the same," he managed to admit, voice slightly husky.

"You don't have to," Lucrecia assured him quietly. "I know that you would, if you could. And that's more than enough."

Xemnas seemed satisfied before he noticed something and lifted the hand that had cupped hers, gently wiping at a tear that fell down her face. He seemed confused as he stared at the small drop of water that rested on the tip of his thumb. He glanced up at her sluggishly.

"You were...crying," he noticed rather stupidly. Lucrecia smiled and nodded a bit, squeezing his hand again as she gently ran her own thumb along Xemnas' cheekbone.

"I was," she admitted softly. "I...was just so happy to see you."

Xemnas stared blankly at her for a few moments before returning his gaze to the tear, frowning a bit. "I...remember that...emotion. J-joy. It was...one of my...favorites."

Lucrecia's smile widened a fraction as her eyes threatened to mist over again, although she managed to hold back her tears this time. "I would think so. You always had to tell a joke or play a prank if the situation became too serious or sad. Remember," she gave a quiet laugh at the memory, "remember when my kitten died? You brought me a bunch of roses, and then when I went to sniff them, you sprayed water in my face using the small hose you hid inside."

Something about her expression caused Xemnas to smile weakly in return. "I d-do," he whispered. "It was two days...before you found out y...you were pregnant...with Ienzo."

Lucrecia nodded silently and pulled the hand from his face to hold his free one, causing the tear ballancing on top of it to spill over.

"And then, eight and a half months later, we had our first child," she mumbled quietly. Xemnas' smile widened a fraction, eyelids drooping a fraction before he quickly forced them to open more.

"And...Riku?" he asked quietly. Lucrecia nearly choaked, although she smiled again.

"He's here, with me. He and his friends are going to sleep."

"...is it...late?"

"At least eleven at night," she mumbled quietly. Xemnas suddenly frowned at her, looking almost disapproving.

"You should b...be asleep, too..." he responded. Lucrecia chuckled quietly.

"I'm not leaving you again, love."

Xemnas stared into her eyes. His voice seemed to get quieter. "I met a Ri...a Riku a l-little while...ago. He was...strong."

Lucrecia's smile fell a fraction, not escaping Xemnas' notice. He blinked at her blearily.

"He seemed like...like he w-was really...nice," he finally said, voice seeming to fade as he went on. He cleared his throat and when he resumed speaking, it was back to being as strong as when the sentance started. "He had some...friends with him." He gave his slight smile again. "He...reminded me of...you. I wonder if...if our s-son is that strong."

Lucrecia hesitated only a moment before her smile widened again and she nodded. "I hope so, too," she agreed softly. She noticed that Xemnas was now struggling to keep his eyes open even a fraction and she chuckled quietly, tilting her head. "You need to sleep. You're still recovering from your injuries."

"But...this..." Xemnas suddenly seemed helpless, eyes widening a fraction in his shadowed horror. "It will end...when I w-wake...up. You'll be...gone..." His voice dropped until Lucrecia could barely hear it. "Just like...all those times b...before..."

Lucrecia stared blankly at him for a few moments before she suddenly chuckled quietly and leaned forward, his hot breath and hers mingling together as their eyes locked, level with each other. "I promise I will be here when you wake up."

He gave an almost-whimper, fighting a losing battle to stay contious. "You...promise...?"

"Promise," she mumbled, leaning forward and gently kissing him again. She relished in the familiar taste of mint and what could only be described as Darkness as she carefully nipped at his lip, knowing full-well he did not have enough energy to fight back. When his lips finally went slack and his breathing evened, Lucrecia pulled back with a soft smile. "I promise, Xemnas. I won't leave you tonight...and like I said before...I'll follow you to the ends of the universe."

Saïx heard from outside and smiled to himself, walking off to go find a blanket. He knew as well as everyone else in the whole of Radient Garden that when Lucrecia made a promise, she kept it.

When he returned, blanket in hand, she was out like a light, head resting on Xemnas' chest and still clutching both of his hands. Saïx paused in the doorway, staring in surprise at the obviously-uncomfortable position, then smiled again and walked over. He carefully lifted her up so that she was laying next to Xemnas on the bed, moving slowly so as not to wake her, and left her head and hands alone. Lucrecia uncontiously curled up closer to Xemnas, who in return opened a bleary eye just long enough to see Saïx fixing a blanket over them. He carefully pulled his right hand from Lucrecia's grasp and instead clutched her close, closing his eye and falling asleep again before Saïx could realize he was awake in the first place.

On his way out, Saïx paused in the doorway, the fine hairs on the back of his neck standing up and he let out a low growl. He sensed a powerful Heartless nearby, one with a familiar, yet unfamiliar scent, but when he turned around to look into the room, it abruptly disappeared. Saïx watched the sleeping couple for a few, tense moments before cursing his own nerves and leaving, muttering to himself about "stupid over-protectiveness" as he made his way to his own room.

He was unaware that Xehanort's Heartless was nearby, smirking at the two sleeping on the bed as a low chuckle escaped its lips. Perhaps it would have to wait for a little time before it could put its plan into action...but it was patient, and it would not spring its trap until it was ready.

No matter how long that took...

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When Xemnas awoke fully, he was aware of three things. One: His amazingly-accurate internal clock told him that it was nearly nine in the morning. Two: He was in intense pain, although it was quickly dulling even as he thought so. And three:

There was something warm and comfortably familiar resting on his chest.

He pried open his eyes, blinking a few times in the harsh sunlight, and wearily scanned the room he was in before he did anything else as his warrior instincts told him. Xemnas reluctantly relaxed a fraction when he realized that he was in one of the labs in the Corridors outside of Ansem the Wise's study, vaguely aware of why he was and thankful that the others had put him there. A familiar scent suddenly invaded his senses as well as a gentle thump from nearby that he recognized as a Heartbeat and his eyes widened as he craned his neck, staring in shock at the familiar form sleeping in his arms.

It was none other than his wonderful, beautiful Lucrecia.

Xemnas stared blankly at her for a few moments as he processed this, the slightly hazy events of the night before flooding his mind. The hole in his chest throbbed gently as it suddenly occured to him that they were real. Not another of his wishful dreams--this was _real_.

He nearly fell over at the thought, and probably would have, had he not already been laying down on a bed.

He quickly turned his attention to studying the features of his Lucrecia, who was sleeping soundly. She was almost exactly as he remembered, but somehow, it was better because this was REAL!

Her skin, unnaturally pale despite her many years on Destiny Islands, seemed to glow with radience, the slight flush on her high cheekbones only accenting that ethereal illusion. Her lips, full, lush, and more familiar to Xemnas than his own were slightly parted as if begging him to take them in his own, and her eyes, though closed, were undoubtedly as beautiful as he remembered--slanted storms of purple and blue that clashed against each other in a hypnotic way. She had aged, to be sure, and the crow's feet in the corners of her eyes and the slight creases in her forehead showed that, but she had aged gracefully, losing none of her natural beauty.

Unable to hold back anymore, Xemnas carefully brushed the long black hair, seemingly blue in the soft light filtering into the room, from her face and leaned forward, gently catching her lips in his own. He nearly died when he tasted the familiar mix of chocolate and what could only be described as Light, careful not to do anything more than nip on her lower lip before he slowly pulled back, gazing at his Lucrecia as a fierce protectiveness overcame him.

She was there. She was his. And he was not planning on letting her go any time soon.

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As if in response to the silent pleas in the back of Xemnas' mind, purple-blue orbs flickered open, blinking lazily in the light of the room as Lucrecia slowly awoke. She glanced around in confusion for a few moments before remembering where she was. Her eyes widened in surprise and she practically jumped into a sitting position, trying to pull her hands to her face as she slowly started to blush. She was unable to do so when her hands were held fast and she blinked slowly in confusion before lifting her gaze to meet familiar reddish-gold orbs that were much clearer than they had been that night.

"Good morning," Xemnas mumbled, smiling a bit at her. She nearly melted right there as she smiled back.

"Good morning," she responded quietly, voice hardly more than a whisper.

The two stared at each other in silence for a few moments.

"Lucrecia," Xemnas half-whispered, looking at her almost pleadingly. "You came back."

"Of course," she chuckled. She continued to smile at him, whispering herself despite the fact that she knew there was no need. For some odd reason, she got the feeling that, should she speak too loudly, the peace of the morning would be shattered. "Don't you remember what I said last night?"

Xemnas stared at her for a few moments. "...bits and pieces."

Lucrecia again chuckled and nodded. "I could understand that. You seemed heavily-medicated."

"I remember...speaking of Riku and Ienzo," he said in a soft voice. Lucrecia paused at that, smile faultering.

"A little of both," she admitted. "Mostly of Riku."

"Is he safe?"

Lucrecia smiled and nodded at him. "Perfectly so. Actually, he's here. Well, in another room, but still..."

Xemnas froze at that and stared at her. "You took him with?" he asked, sounding almost haunted. Lucrecia arched an eyebrow and nodded slowly.

"Of course," she said quietly. "We recieved a letter from King Mickey saying that he needed us to come. He said that I needed to come with--that it was about 'Xeha and the others'."

The younger of the two flinched a bit as Lucrecia gave him a pointed look. "Don't you dare start," she warned him. She smiled again. "Didn't you know I already forgave you?"

"You have no idea what we did," he responded, eyes closing slowly. He blinked them open in surprise when she caught his lips in her own, although he quickly melted into it. She pulled back all too soon and he gazed at her helplessly, wishing that she would have continued. She merely smiled.

"I think I have a pretty good idea. I got all of the information from Sora."

Xemnas stared blankly at her for a moment before it clicked and his eyes widened a fraction. "The Keyblade Weilder?!"

"And his friend Riku," she added, staring pointedly at him. She paused a moment before elaborating. "Your son Riku."

Her lover looked about ready to die at that. "Then...our...your...my...my son?" he asked meekly. Lucrecia smiled and nodded.

"He's just as strong as you hoped, both physically and mentally."

"Then I nearly...I almost..." Xemnas looked ready to puke. "Oh Naught. I nearly...killed...our son...?"

"But you didn't," Lucrecia said quietly. "And that's all that matters."

"Does he...?" he asked, voice hardly more than a whisper.

"No." Lucrecia sighed and her eyes flickered until they were half-lidded. "But he is aware Zexion is his brother now."

Xemnas stayed silent for a few moments. "...I...appologize."

Lucrecia blinked in confusion, giving him a weird look. "For what?" she asked rather stupidly. Xemnas' gaze drifted to the side.

"If I hadn't wanted to find out more about the Heart," he said quietly. "If...Xehanort hadn't...then Ienzo would still..."

"If you're about to say 'be alive', stop right there." Taken-aback by the stern tone of voice, Xemnas blinked in confusion and stared at Lucrecia, who was gazing at him with a seriousness that seemed foreign, yet familiar at the same time. "He _is_ alive, Xemnas. He lives on in Zexion, whether he knows it or not."

"You..." Xemnas seemed unable to find words for a few moments, and when he finally spoke, his voice was even quieter than a whisper. "You know my new name?"

"Of course," Lucrecia said with a soft smile. "I pried the information from everyone else. And let me tell you, it was not easy to do. I had to wait nearly a month to get Riku to tell me anything beyond, 'I left on an adventure, sorry about worrying you to death, do we have any cookies?'!"

A few moments passed before Xemnas cracked a wry smile and chuckled quietly. Lucrecia paused a moment before she smiled at him in return. "I like it better when you smile, you know," she said softly.

"Et tu," he responded quietly. He paused a moment and his gaze flickered towards the closed door before he returned it to her, a mischievious smirk gracing his face. "Why don't we stay here for another hour?"

Lucrecia stared at him a few moments before smirking in return and nodding, laying down at his side and shifting so that she would not upset his injuries. Dissatisfied, Xemnas moved her head so that it rested directly over where his Heart should have been, wrapping his right arm around her while his left hand tightened a bit on hers. She sighed in contentment and smiled again, cuddling closer and closing her eyes as she focused on his wonderful, musky scent and the gentle rise and fall of his chest. She was unperterbed by the absence of a Heartbeat and merely gave another long, content sigh.

She was fine here. She was protected. She was at _home_. And as long as Xemnas was close, she would always feel that way.

Always...


	6. Chapter 5

Kingdom Hearts:

The Truth Behind Xehanort

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Summary: Riku, Sora, and Kairi have finally returned to Destiny Islands after their two and a half year-long adventure across the universe. Things have finally settled down and everything has seemingly returned to the normal, boring way it was before. But when a letter from the King sets off a mysterious chain of events, can Riku save the one thing dearer to him than his friends? And better yet--what is this secret King Mickey has uncovered by going through the files on Ansem's computer...? "XEHANORT HAD A _WHAT_?!" "A fiancée, Riku. Xehanort had a fiancée." Pairings: Xehanort/OC; Suggested/Friendships: Any and All! (ie, Axel/RoxasSuggested, Zexion/LexaeusSuggested, Riku/SoraSuggested, Sora/KairiSuggested, Riku/Kairi/SoraSuggested, Zexion/DemyxSuggested, Xigbar/XaldinSuggested, etc.)

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Warnings: Major spoilers mixed in, bad language, hinted shonen-ai, possible/suggested (graphic?) character death, gruesome and multiple fight scenes, graphic torture, and possible (attempted?) (graphic?) suicide. Warnings are subject to change as story proceeds.

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Notes: 7-3-08 I don't own KH, FF(insert number here), any sort of anime/manga titles, or Disney, so anything related to them is not mine. I do, however, own my OCs, this storyline, and so on. Please excuse any problems with anyone's characters, as for about three of them, I truthfully have little to no experience and am going only on what I believe would be appropriate. And if you have any suggestions for anything, feel free to tell me! I enjoy flames, too--just not the perverted kind. X3

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**LUCRECIA'S JOURNAL, ENTRY FIVE:**

**PREPARE**

**((MKL: aka "ready...steady...let's go! ...or not..."))**

When Vexen walked in to check on Xemnas' progress later that morning, to say that he was shocked would be the understatement of the year.

"_Lord Superior?_" he hissed in confusion. Xemnas raised a finger to his lips and gestured towards Lucrecia, who was laying next to/on top of him, fast asleep.

"She was awake half the night," Xemnas mumbled as Vexen walked briskly forward. The blonde frowned in disapproval and Xemnas arched an eyebrow in return. "What?"

Vexen merely smirked and shook his head, turning to look at the readouts printing next to him. "Riku will not be happy. He has been tearing apart the Corridors searching for her."

Xemnas snorted and rolled his eyes in response. "You act like I care."

Vexen paused mid-reading and arched an eyebrow at Xemnas, who stared back before giving a rather defeated sigh.

"All right, I suppose I do," he admitted quietly, careful not to wake Lucrecia up despite the fact that his hand was starting to become numb. "But he can't know. Not yet."

Vexen now gave another disapproving frown, but this time, it was much more serious. "Xemnas," he said quietly, using his Superior's name (he only did this when he was about to lecture about something), "he is your _son_. With the exception of Sora, Kairi, and Riku himself, everyone within a two-mile radius knows that!"

"Then they should keep their mouths shut." Vexen's frown deepened, but Xemnas' stern expression kept him from commenting. "I mean it. He...doesn't need to know." Xemnas looked oddly uncertain as he shifted his gaze towards the woman in his arms, giving a quiet sigh. "Lucrecia has yet to tell him. No one else should have the privilage."

Vexen stared at him for a few moments before nodding and setting aside the readouts. "I will make sure to pass the message."

"Thank you, Vexen," Xemnas said quietly, still staring at Lucrecia. Vexen smirked a bit and nodded.

"You are quite welcome, Superior. And," he glanced curiously at Lucrecia, "when she wakes up, you can feel free to remove your bandages and get dressed. I am sure the others will be relieved to see that you have recovered."

And with that, he swept out of the room, leaving Xemnas still staring silently at Lucrecia in his wake.

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Less than an hour after Vexen had informed everyone else that Xemnas was fine and Lucrecia was as safe as she could possibly be (the Nobodys had shared a snicker/smirk at that one), Xemnas and Lucrecia finally made their appearence, Lucrecia speaking animatedly about what she had been doing for the past fifteen years or so. Xemnas listened intently to everything and completely ignored Sora and Kairi when they walked past, making a comment about how "peaceful the Islands were rumored to be" and how relieved he was that she "was unharmed despite everything" instead. They soon shared a laugh/chuckle at the stunned looks they recieved from the teenagers.

It was not until they reached the Study that they were caught by none other than a very, _very_ pissed-off Riku.

"Mother!" he called, rushing up to her from the way to the main computer. Lucrecia blinked in surprise, then smiled as she gazed at her son.

"Riku," she said brightly. "Good morning! I hope you slept well?"

Riku casted a glare at Xemnas, who merely smirked in "amusement", before turning back to her with worry clearly etched into his features.

"Are you all right?" he asked instead. Lucrecia chuckled and nodded.

"Of course," she assured him, pulling him into a hug. Xemnas watched silently, the shadow of sadness flickering over his features for the briefest of moments as she gently stroked his hair. "I'm a big girl, Riku--I can take care of myself."

Riku seemed a bit doubtful as he pulled away from her hug, then glanced towards Xemnas, clearly suspicious. "Mom...why are you...?"

"Hello, Riku," Xemnas greeted, again smirking as he gave the illusion that he was amused. "Good to see you again."

"Xemnas," Riku growled at him, eyes narrowed. "What are you doing with my mother?"

"Oh, nothing." Xemnas seemed honestly surprised at the question. "Absolutely nothing. We were merely speaking. Is there a problem with that?"

The return of "amusement" had Riku frowning suspiciously before he turned back to his mother, ignoring the question. "Are you sure, Mom?" he asked doubtfully. "Do you need me to--?"

"Don't worry," Lucrecia said with a good-natured chuckle. "I'm perfectly safe. Besides, if some Heartless attack or anything, there are plenty of warriors here to protect me, right?"

Riku merely nodded and turned to walk away, mumbling to himself, "That's what I'm afraid of."

Lucrecia waited patiently until he walked away before smiling up at Xemnas. "He doesn't seem to like you much."

"Actually, I think he hates my guts," Xemnas sighed rather dejectedly. Lucrecia's smile faultered a bit before she gently reached up and pecked his cheek. This got his attention and he glanced down at her, confused as she chuckled softly.

"Don't worry," she assured him quietly. "Be your usual, charming self and I'm sure that you'll grow on him."

Xemnas glanced around, checked his senses to make sure there were no beating Hearts nearby, then quickly stole a soft, testing kiss. It was returned almost immidiately.

"Are we interuptin' somethin', dude?" someone from the doorway snickered. Xemnas broke away in an instant, cursing himself for only searching for beating Hearts as Lucrecia blinked out of her daze. Xemnas glared at Xigbar and Xaldin, who were standing in the doorway, Xigbar making a kissy-face and Xaldin snickering quietly.

"Get out of here," Xemnas hissed in "annoyance".

"I get the feeling we're not wanted in this situation," Xaldin said with fake hurt.

"Well then, come along, my good friend," Xigbar snickered as he marched through the room. "We'll leave the two little birdies alone."

This earned full-out laughter that echoed back to Xemnas and Lucrecia as they stood awkwardly, Lucrecia blushing deeply as Xemnas continued to mentally curse himself for being such an idiot.

"Let's try that again," Lucrecia said suddenly, smiling mischieviously up at Xemnas. Her lover blinked twice in surprise before stretching his senses again and giving a rather dejected sigh.

"Sora, Kairi, and Zexion are coming," he mumbled to her, gently taking her hand. She pouted rather childishly, causing him to smile and gently peck her cheek. "We'll coninue later, when we're not likely to be interupted.

Lucrecia chuckled and nodded, beginning to walk towards the computer room. "It's a date."

And Xemnas gave a small smile that had not completely left when they made it into the room, where Riku and Mickey were standing next to the computer, speaking quietly, Lexaeus and Vexen were standing nearby and listening intently, and Xigbar and Xaldin were making kissy faces and laughing, apparently still making fun of the two. Lucrecia refused to let go of Xemnas' hand despite the sudden stares from everyone save Riku, who was apparently ignoring Xemnas' existance. Mickey smiled a bit at them as Xemnas avoided his gaze, Lexaeus quirked an eyebrow and Vexen smirked.

"Lord Superior, Lucrecia," Vexen greeted. "Good to see you two have decided to join us."

"Vexen," Xemnas said warningly. Vexen backed off, but continued to smirk as Xaldin and Xigbar started laughing again.

"Heya, Misses Xen," Mickey greeted brightly. He tensed a fraction when he saw Xemnas, but forced himself to relax a moment later, smile holding fast. "Xemnas."

"Your Highness," Xemnas said almost mockingly, giving a slight bow. Lucrecia scowled playfully at him and pulled her hand away from his, gently hitting his arm just as Sora, Kairi, and Zexion (who was trailing behind the two slightly) walked into the room.

"Oh, leave him alone, Xemnas," she said with a roll of her eyes. "He's a King. Show some respect."

The whole room tensed and everyone stared at Xemnas, wondering how he might respond, but to everyone's surprise, he smirked at her.

"Whatever you say, Lucrecia," he said without a hint of sarcasm, straightening up and nodding at her. The Somebodys, minus Mickey, turned to stare at Lucrecia for seemingly taming the beast as the Nobodys all either snickered, smirked, or muttered 'whipped!' under their breath (the last one partaining only to Xigbar, who then promptly started snickering along with Xaldin). Mickey merely smiled again and nodded his understanding.

"Perhaps the King should begin explaining what he needs us to do," Zexion said quietly, frowning a bit at Xemnas and Lucrecia before turning his full attention to the mouse king. Everyone else obidiently followed suit, minus the frowning part, although Xigbar had flashed Xemnas a knowing grin and wink. Or he might have just blinked--it was a bit hard to tell with the eyepatch.

"Whelp," Mickey said, suddenly all-business as he stared with obvious seriousness at the group, "we just got another message from Master Yen Sid, the one who first contacted us 'bout the Heartless. He said that it was first spotted near the old mansion, and that the humanoid one has short blonde hair and is wearin' an Organization cloak. The large Heartless followin' it looks kinda looks like a guy, with long hair-like stuff, and blue and white tinges to it."

"That eliminates Xehanort's Heartless," Riku mumbled to himself. He was ignored.

"Can they tell if the human one is a boy or a girl?" Lexaeus asked quietly. Mickey paused a moment before shaking his head.

"Nope. He doesn't wanna get close enough ta check."

"Don't blame 'im," Xigbar snorted with a roll of his eyes. At the curious looks sent his way, he merely arched an eyebrow and folded his arms over his chest. "Dudes, short blonde hair means either Larxene or Luxord. Luxord's powers are a pain in the ass, since he can essentially un-do anythin' ya attack 'im with, and Larxene's a freakin' sadist with power over one of the most destructive elements: Lightening. Do any of you guys really wanna cross either of 'em?"

"Not really," Vexen mumbled, rolling his eyes.

"Been there, done that," Sora snorted, smirking a bit.

"Sora, shut up," Kairi groaned. Sora blinked innocently, confused, but obidiently closed his mouth.

"Who's going to go for this?" Xaldin suddenly asked, shifting his gaze between Xemnas and Mickey. The two exchanged looks.

"I'm going," Riku said with a fron and a nod before anyone else could say anything. No one objected.

"I'll stay here," Kairi said quietly, smiling a bit. She clasped her hands behind her back and leaned forward a bit. "I'm not a big fighter, so I'd probably just get in the way."

"I'll stay with Kairi!" Sora offered with a rather stupid grin. Xigbar and Xaldin exchanged smirks.

"And you guys?" Mickey asked with a blink, turning to the Nobodys.

"I will stay here," Vexen said. "I am of no use against Larxene should it be her, and since there is a fifty per-cent chance, I would rather stay behind and work on my experiments."

"Don't blow up the labs again," Xigbar snorted with a stupid grin. Vexen shot him a look, but otherwise did not respond.

"I want to stay, too," Xaldin suddenly called, raising his hand. Lexaeus grunted his agreement.

"I suppose I will go," Zexion said with a nod and a bit of a smirk. "Besides, it has been quite a while since I have gotten into a fight."

"Zexion," Lucrecia muttered, frowning at him. He winced a bit and his smirk slowly fell, but he did not retract his agreement.

"'Kay, and you three?" Mickey asked, shifting his gaze between Xigbar, Saïx, and Xemnas.

"Dude, I'm not really in the mood ta leave," Xigbar snorted, then grinned. "'Sides, I'm kinda itchin' to pull some pranks."

"Contact me," Xaldin merely said, smirking. Xigbar snickered at that and nodded.

"Come anywhere near my labs, Xigbar, and I swear...!" Vexen growled, glowering at him. Xigbar ignored him.

"I...will go," Xemnas decided quietly, nodding. At the surprised glances from the Keybladers, Kairi, and his highest three subordinates, he explained in that same calm, quiet voice. "I wish to prove that I don't intend to send only the others to do the work I promised I would do."

"I will follow Lord Superior," Saïx said almost immidiately.

"And I will, too," Lucrecia said with a serious nod. Now everyone turned to stare at her.

"No, you won't," Xemnas immidiately objected, frowning at her. Lucrecia arched an eyebrow at him and put her hands on her hips.

"And why not?"

"Because you'll get hurt."

"For once, I agree with Xemnas," Riku offered, also frowning at Lucrecia. She shot him a look and he obidiently shut up, although he still seemed to side with the older man.

"Look, if you think I'm going to get 'hurt' because I can't fight, you're wrong," Lucrecia snapped, fire flaring in her eyes. Everyone once more stared at her, although she ignored them. "I lived in the Second District of Traverse Town for nine months. If you so much as want to go to the store for milk, you have to learn how to fight within a week. According to the mage I worked under, I'm a natural tallent when it comes to magic."

"I'm not convinced," Xemnas said, still aprehensive. Lucrecia's eyes narrowed at him.

"Fine then. Vexen!"

"Y-yes?" he asked, jumping and blinking at her in surprise. Her gaze did not waver from Xemnas' reddish-gold eyes.

"You're an ice-element, right?" she asked slowly.

Vexen stared blankly at her for a few moments. "Well...yes..."

"And ice magic--you'd absorb it, right?"

"Essentially..." he agreed, hesitating only a moment. She nodded.

"Brace yourself," she said, finally turning to look at him as she held up a hand. Before he could question why, she shouted, "BLIZARDA!"

Large, sharp icicles flew from her open palm and went towards Vexen too fast for the eye to see, hitting his body within instants. There were a few tense moments before the ice slowly disappeared, leaving Vexen totally unharmed, although his eyes seemed to shine a bit more brightly than they had moments before.

"A warning would have been nice," he mumbled quietly, lifting a hand to poke at his stomach where the icicles had hit.

Satisfied, Lucrecia turned back to Xemnas with an arched eyebrow. "That's only a level two spell. I know level three and four, too, as well as Fire, Lightening, Reflective, Magnet, Healing, Wind, Time, and even a bit of Dark Magic," she told him pointedly. "I also have a staff to use in hand-to-hand should I run out of Magic Power. Satisfied?"

Xemnas stared at her for a few more moments before frowning. "Fine," he finally said, worry in his eyes. "But when we engage the two Heartless, I want you to stay back."

After thinking for a moment, Lucrecia smiled and nodded. "I can do that. I'll just keep casting Reflect when it looks like I might be hit."

"And, should worse come to worse," Zexion suddenly said, drawing his parent's attention as he gazed pointedly at them, "I do have my Lexicon. She can wait in there for the fighting to be over."

Confusion washed over the Somebodys in the room, but Xemnas finally seemed satisfied and nodded his agreement.

"Any sign that she is in real trouble," he said pointedly. Zexion merely nodded.

"Overprotective!" Xigbar sing-songed to the other Nobodys, smirking. There were a few nods in agreement, although Kairi (who happened to be the only Somebody in earshot) glanced over in confusion. She was ignored, which was fine with her as she turned back to the conversation.

"Whelp, I'm comin' with you guys," Mickey decided with a nod and a smile. Riku shot him a greatful look. "Cid's got a new Gummiship for us ta take. It's an upgrade of _The Highwind_."

"_The Highwind_?" Riku echoed, arching an eyebrow and frowning at Sora. "You stole my name!"

"Hey, it's coincidence, I swear!" Sora quickly exclaimed, waving his hands in front of himself defensively. "Donald and Goofy already named it when I came! It's not like _I_ had any say in the matter..."

Riku did not seem convinced, although he did not press the matter, either.

"Everyone should probably get ready," Saïx suddenly said, staring pointedly at the group. "We should probably take as many Potions, Elixers, and Ethers as we can carry, not to mention any extra weapons we might need. We can meet back here in an hour so we can leave."

With that, he walked off, leaving the others slowly dispersing in his wake.

"I need to go change," Lucrecia chuckled, smiling at Xemnas. "I'll be right back!"

She scampered off towards the ship, leaving Xemnas, Riku, and Zexion standing awkwardly with the other Nobodys in her wake.

"Er, I think I should go with her so she doesn't get lost," Riku said slowly, casting a weary glance at Zexion, then a glare at Xemnas. He was off in an instant.

"He doesn't know," Xemnas stated more than asked, sighing softly. Zexion glanced over curiously as the other Nobodys smartly left the room, Mickey following as he mumbled something about getting the ship for them so they could leave sooner rather than later.

"He will," Zexion responded quietly. "When Mother thinks he's ready to find out."

Xemnas shook his head and closed his eyes, pinching the bridge of his nose. "But in the meantime, he hates the fact that I exist. Not that I could blame him, what with my Heartless taking possession of him, but still..."

"Do not worry." Xemnas opened his eyes and glanced over in mild surprise as Zexion stared up at him seriously. The younger suddenly smirked and folded his arms over his chest. "He's sure to warm up to us eventually, mortal enemies at one point or not."

Xemnas chuckled and nodded, returning his gaze to the doorway and folding his arms behind his back. "Yes. I suppose you're right," he said softly.

"Not if I have any say in it," Xehanort's Heartless sneered nearby, shadowy eyes narrowed a fraction at the scene. It stared at the two before it for a few more moments, just long enough for its scent to leak towards Zexion, and then it rather abruptly disappeared.


	7. Chapter 6

Kingdom Hearts:

The Truth Behind Xehanort

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Summary: Riku, Sora, and Kairi have finally returned to Destiny Islands after their two and a half year-long adventure across the universe. Things have finally settled down and everything has seemingly returned to the normal, boring way it was before. But when a letter from the King sets off a mysterious chain of events, can Riku save the one thing dearer to him than his friends? And better yet--what is this secret King Mickey has uncovered by going through the files on Ansem's computer...? "XEHANORT HAD A _WHAT_?!" "A fiancée, Riku. Xehanort had a fiancée." Pairings: Xehanort/OC; Suggested/Friendships: Any and All! (ie, Axel/RoxasSuggested, Zexion/LexaeusSuggested, Riku/SoraSuggested, Sora/KairiSuggested, Riku/Kairi/SoraSuggested, Zexion/DemyxSuggested, Xigbar/XaldinSuggested, etc.)

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Warnings: Major spoilers mixed in, bad language, hinted shonen-ai, possible/suggested (graphic?) character death, gruesome and multiple fight scenes, graphic torture, and possible (attempted?) (graphic?) suicide. Warnings are subject to change as story proceeds.

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Notes: 7-3-08 I don't own KH, FF(insert number here), any sort of anime/manga titles, or Disney, so anything related to them is not mine. I do, however, own my OCs, this storyline, and so on. Please excuse any problems with anyone's characters, as for about three of them, I truthfully have little to no experience and am going only on what I believe would be appropriate. And if you have any suggestions for anything, feel free to tell me! I enjoy flames, too--just not the perverted kind. X3

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**LUCRECIA'S JOURNAL, ENTRY SIX:**

**START**

**((MKL: aka "ready...steady...let's go for real this time! (and no, there is no sex scene in the second section.)"))**

One hour later, the group that was leaving, plus Xigbar, Sora, and Vexen, were standing in the computer room...save one member.

"Where is she?" Zexion asked, gazing curiously at Riku. The younger gave a ghusty sigh and shook his head, shrugging with his hands up in an "I-don't-know-don't-blame-me" gesture.

"She's probably changing," he mumbled, folding his arms over his chest. "She tends to take forever when she does."

"Dudes, you gotta get goin' soon," Xigbar said, frowning a bit.

"I agree," Vexen piped up, also frowning. "There is no telling if and when the Heartless will leave. It is bad enough that you cannot take any Corridors of Darkness."

"Which reminds me," Sora suddenly said, gazing curiously at the Nobodys in the room. "Why aren't you guys going by Corridor? I mean, isn't it easier than Gummiship?"

"Corridors tend to attract Heartless to an area," Saïx said quietly, leaning against the nearby wall with his arms folded over his chest in a vaguely Leon-esque fashion. His eyes were even closed, and the scar on his face added to the effect. "They are also difficult to control. Unless we want to put in a permident Corridor, there's no telling for sure where we might end up on the world, and there is a chance we will be in a densely-populated area..."

He died off, not needing to say anything more.

"We should just leave," Xemnas suddenly said. Everyone turned to give him a weird look, but he was perfectly serious. "There's no need to put her in danger. I was against this in the first place, anyway. She would be much safer here, with everyone else."

"Oho, plotting to leave without me, are you, Xemnas?" a familiar female voice chuckled from the doorway. Everyone turned...and stared at Lucrecia as she stood there, smiling with her hands on her hips.

Her long, silky hair was pulled up into a loose bun on the top-back of her head, a few locks falling over her forehead and into her shining eyes, creating a natural effect that looked nice on her. She was wearing a forest-green, long sleeved jacket that trailed down to mid-thigh and was open to reveal a tan, low-necked shirt that showed just enough cleavage to tease the others (more specifically Xemnas), baggy black pants lying low on her hips, and black gym shoes with green swirls on the sides. There were fingerless, dark green gloves on her hands, a loose, dark brown belt around her waist with a silver Nobody symbol for the clasp, and dangling around her neck was a thin silver chain with what appeared to be a miniature Energy Crystal dangling just above her breasts. Despite being in her fourties, Lucrecia had a nice body, although her breasts were a bit on the small side and her hips a bit wide from childbirth.

"Well? What do you think?" Lucrecia asked innocently. Xemnas opened and closed his mouth a few times before swallowing and shaking his head, regaining himself. And here he was thinking she could not get any more beautiful.

"What are you wearing?" Riku asked, sounding more surprised than appauled. Lucrecia grinned at him.

"It's one of my old traveling outfits. You know, Riku, before your father came around, I did have a few adventures of my own. Not as dramatic as yours, for sure, but they were still a lot of fun."

"You look great, Mother," Zexion assured her, giving a half-smile. Lucrecia smiled in return.

"Thank you, Zexion," she said kindly.

"We, uh, should go," Mickey quickly said, trying to regain everyone's attention. They all quickly snapped their attention to him as Lucrecia moved to stand next to Xemnas, smiling mischieviously.

"You did this on purpose," he muttered to her. She tried to look innocent.

"Whatever are you talking about, Xemnas?" she whispered in return. Xemnas merely frowned a bit at her, then gave a slight smile as Mickey lead them towards the Gummiship, Xemnas and Lucrecia lagging behind a bit.

"You look beautiful."

"Heheh. You said the exact same thing the first time you saw me wear this, when I was nineteen and you were only seventeen years old. Remember?"

"Naturally," he responded quietly. He reached out and discretely took her hand, careful to hide the fact that he was doing so from the group ahead. "It was the first time I ever saw an angel."

"You big sap," Lucrecia mumbled, flushing slightly. "I hate it when you say that. I'm the opposite of an angel, you know."

Yet despite that, she was smiling.

"Say, Mom," Riku suddenly called, causing Lucrecia to jerk her hand back and hunch her shoulders a fraction. Her son was staring curiously at her as she forced another smile in place, although he did not question why. "Where's your staff? You said you were going to bring it..."

"I did," she said with a nod. She chuckled at the look on Riku's face. "You'll see when we get there, Riku. Okay?"

Riku merely grunted as Zexion gazed at her curiously, although he refrained from speaking.

"Lord Superior," Saïx said suddenly, glancing towards his leader, "do you sense that?"

Xemnas paused a moment and streatched out his senses, eyes narrowing a fraction as he nodded. "Pretend you don't," he muttered. "Warn the others. We'll wait until he makes a move before we strike."

Saïx nodded his understanding before moving forward to converse quietly with first Zexion, then Riku, and finally the King.

"What was that about?" Lucrecia asked, confused. Xemnas gazed down at her for a few moments before shaking his head.

"Nothing," he assured her. "We're taking care of it."

Although still confused, Lucrecia backed down as they boarded the Gummiship, which was easily twice as big as the first one--and with good reason, since they had almost twice as many people on it.

"Okay, everyone--I've got controls!" Mickey announced. "Riku, Zexion--will ya handle weapons for me?"

"I'll take care of the lazers," Riku quickly said as he jumped into the seat on Mickey's right.

"That leaves me with the main guns," Zexion said, smirking a bit.

"We're going to die, you know," Xemnas called innocently to Mickey. When the small king turned around, Xemnas smirked in a way that made Lucrecia briefly wonder why Riku had yet to make the connection. "There's a reason why Xaldin was the captain of our Gummiship fleet and not Zexion, despite the fact that Zexion is a better stratagist."

Zexion merely snickered at that and sat down, glancing over the controls before positioning his hands over a few of the buttons for the more advanced ones.

"Whelp, too late now!" Mickey said with a smile. "'Sides, he can't be that bad, can he?"

He recieved his response when they flew off.

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"Zexion, I forbid you from touching the guns on a Gummiship while I'm inside of it!" Lucrecia announced when they were on their way down the enemy-less stretch between Assault of the Dreadnaught and the world itself. She looked quite frazzled, as did the rest of the passangers--including Saïx and Mickey.

"I agree," Riku groaned, burrying his face in his hands as he struggled not to puke. Zexion blinked at them with as much innocence as he could muster, which was truthfully not much.

"I was holding back," he assured them.

"I don't think that's going to help your case," Xemnas said smoothly in response, the first to fully recover from the aftermath.

"I...think I need to take a nap," Saïx decided, slightly dazed as he went down the hallway.

"Whelp, we've got about an hour before we make it ta Twilight Town," Mickey said with a nod as he jumped from the driver's seat. "The ship'll tell us when it's time ta go. 'Till then, I'll be in my room."

He followed after Saïx, leaving the Xen family alone.

"Xemnas, will you come with me?" Lucrecia suddenly said, gazing intently up at him. Xemnas arched an eyebrow at her in return as she smiled, gazing pointedly at Zexion and Riku. "I think my sons need to bond for a little while."

"Mother," Zexion groaned at the same time Riku exclaimed, "Mom!"

"No, you two need to bond! You know," a mischievious glint entered her eye, "I hear that there's a sparring room. Maybe you two want to fight out your differences?"

Zexion and Riku exchanged looks before Riku reluctantly nodded. "I guess," he mumbled. He started off down the hall, Zexion hesitating a moment to gaze between his parents.

"...maybe I can convince him that Big Brother needs to be respected," he said finally, giving a slight smirk. With that, he went off after Riku, leaving an "amused" Xemnas and chuckling Lucrecia behind.

"So," Xemnas said quietly, leaning towards Lucrecia and gently brushing a few strands of hair out of her eyes as his own glinted gently, "what are the parents to do while the children are away?"

Lucrecia's smile turn into a smirk and she grabbed his hand, leading him down the hallway. She completely bypassed the dojo, where the epic battle was already beginning, and made it down to the room that she knew for a fact was theirs because it had a swirling Heart design on it. It was the very same symbol that was made up of diamonds on the ring on Lucrecia's finger, and engraved into the thick silver one that was safely hidden in Xemnas' old room in The Castle That Never Was.

"We play," she answered quietly, closing the door as she stood up on her tiptoes and caught his lips in a passionate kiss.

That was all Xemnas needed to hear.

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"So, we're supposed to 'spar', huh?" Riku asked with a snort, sizing up his opponent as they stood on opposite ends of the rather large, basketball court-length dojo. Riku was a good three inches taller than his supposed older brother, and Zexion looked almost sickly with his unnaturally-pale skin (much like their mother's), but at the same time, the confident smirk on his face suggested he knew something Riku did not.

"Exactly," Zexion said with a smirk, unzipping his cloak and tossing it aside. It was revealed that underneath he wore a plain black T-shirt with a silver Nobody symbol on the front, baggy black pants, and the standard-issue Organization boots. His arms truthfully looked like sticks, although that did not mean much--Sora's did as well, although hidden in those "sticks" was an assload of thick muscle. Not only that, but Zexion was a known stratagist and had the ability to think under pressure, something which his younger brother occasionally lacked.

"Hmph. You don't look like much."

It was obviously a mind tactic, but Zexion was unphased as he walked over to some padded staffs on a rack in the corner. He gazed at them intently before taking the mid-length one and then moving back, gesturing towards it. Riku gave him a long look before he scanned them himself.

"Powers or no powers?" Zexion asked absently as he looked over the black padded weapon. Riku glanced over.

"No powers," he decided after a few moments, taking a staff that seemed about the same size as Way to the Dawn and taking a testing swing. Satisfied, he walked towards the center of the mat, staff clutched loosely in his right hand. Zexion walked over, holding his own staff in his left hand.

"Ready, Little Brother?"

Riku smirked at that and crouched down, holding up the blade in his familiar fighting position. Zexion held his in basically the same way, only in front of his neck instead of his eyes and his other arm clenched in a fist.

"You'd better believe it," Riku responded easily.

"Then let's begin," Zexion said, his own smirk firmly in place. Riku merely charged him in response.

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There was little to no witty banter during the long fight that took almost the whole hour between Assault of the Dreadnaught and Twilight Town. The two brothers were too intent on trying to pin the other, the unspoken way to win. Every time Riku attacked, Zexion parried; Zexion spent the majority of the fight keeping himself from striking, merely trying to track his younger brother as he jumped around the room at blinding speeds in an attempt to catch Zexion off-guard.

After fourty-five minutes of attacking almost nonstop only to be blocked every time, no matter where he came in from, you would think that Riku would try another tactic. And try another tactic he did.

Finally getting ticked off, Riku decided to hang back for a few moments, huffing gently as sweat only just began to form on his brow. Zexion seemed completely unwinded, most likely due to the fact that he merely stood in one spot and did no more than pivot to block attacks.

"Ready to give up, Little Brother?" Zexion taunted. Riku paused a moment before smirking and shaking his head.

"Never."

Riku was suddenly re-energized as he tilted his head forward at his brother as if bowing. He quickly disappeared from sight again, leaving Zexion to roll his visible eye. "Have we not gotten over this phase yet?" he asked rhetorically. "I believe that you should perhaps try something new."

"I am," Riku responded in a half-whisper. Zexion's eye widened and he moved to twist and block downward, but before he could, he was sent flying towards the wall by a blow to the back of his legs followed closely by Riku ramming his staff into his chest. At the last minute, he twisted and caught the wall, bracing himself for only a moment and seeming to defy gravity before he smirked.

This was just the chance he was waiting for.

Riku's eyes widened as Zexion shoved off of the wall, going almost too quickly for his younger brother to see. A series of harsh, yet not quite as harsh as possible blows rammed their ways into Riku's chest and arms, knocking his staff away as he fell on his back to the mat. Zexion jerked his staff to rest just under Riku's chin as if preparing to crush his windpipe before his smirk widened.

"I win," he said simply. Riku stared at him with wide, surprised eyes as Zexion withdrew the staff, holding out his right hand to help his brother up. Riku's gaze shifted between the hand and Zexion's shining visible eye, a tiny glimmer from the other visible through his hair...and smirked in response.

"Or not," he announced, grabbing the hand and jerking his brother down. Zexion's eye widened in surprise as he was slammed into the floor next to Riku, who laid their for a few moments, laughing. "It's a draw. Can't you tell?"

Zexion frowned a moment before he smiled a bit and chuckled as well. "You really hate losing, don't you?"

"Nah." Riku smirked as he sat up, wrapping his arms around his legs. "I never needed to hate losing. I always win."

Zexion chuckled again and also sat up, blowing the hair on the left side of his face from his visible eye. "...truce, then?" he asked, glancing curiously at Riku. The teen's smirk fell and he stared blankly at the wall before him for a few moments before he nodded and held out his hand.

"Truce," he agreed. Zexion took the offered hand...then rather abruptly jerked Riku to the floor again, using the momentum to pull himself up.

"Hey!" Riku cried out in surprise, blinking rapidly. Zexion smirked again and walked over to grab his cloak, putting it on again, but refraining from closing it up.

"Just wanted to remind you who was the older sibling here," the purple-blue-eyed one snickered. Riku pouted as he jumped to his feet, grabbing the staff he had dropped and putting it away.

"Pfft. You're physically the same age as me."

Zexion rolled his visible eye, keeping his comments to himself as he tossed his staff to Riku. The younger caught it and put it back in a single movement.

"Actually, I'm a few months older physically, unless your birthday's no longer in December." ((MKL: i'm making birthdays up. leave me alone.))

Riku blinked in surprise. "How'd you know that?" he asked rather stupidly.

"Who do you think got stuck changing your diapers when Mother was not around?" Zexion snorted, rolling his eyes. "Because it was not our father. The very same day that you were born, my life became a living hell...well, when Mother left to go run errands, that is."

Riku stared blankly at him for a few moments. "Do you...know our father?"

Only the fact that Zexion was fingering his right sleeve gave away that he was at all effected by the statement. "I did. Nearly nine years ago now. I...have not seen him since."

Well, he was not lying, at least. Xeha(nort) had disappeared, only to be replaced by Xemnas in the life of Ienzo/Zexion.

"Oh," Riku mumbled, dejected. He paused a moment and gazed curiously at Zexion. "And...what was he like?"

"Well," Zexion began slowly, obviously thinking carefully before he answered, "he was kind and generous. He was one of those people that you see giving money to the homeless if they played or sang a good song for him. He was gentle, especially with you--he acted like you were made out of china. Which is to be expected, if you think about it, since you were hardly three when you and Mother left..."

"Do you know why we left?"

Again Zexion paused, fingering his sleeve again. "I am not entirely sure. I believe it had something to do with the experiments on the Heart."

"Oh yeah," Riku suddenly said, frowning in thought, "you worked on those, didn't you?" Zexion merely inclined his head in a half-nod. "Why?"

"Why?" Zexion echoed, brow furrowing in confusion. Riku nodded at him.

"Yeah. Why did you work on the experiments? Didn't you find it inhumane at all, working on living Hearts?"

Zexion stayed silent for a few moments. "I...was only eleven when they began." He kept his voice apathetic, although Riku thought he could see something glint in Zexion's eye. It almost immidiately disappeared. "Great-Grandfather said I was a great mind that would be invaluable to his team, so I joined at age seven. Even--Vexen--and Master Ansem taught me all of the technical things I would need to know, such as math equations and the history of evolution, while Braig and Dilan--Xigbar and Xaldin--taught me how to be a kid. By the time the experiments began, Ienzo was closer to Aeleus--Lexaeus--and the others than even his own mother. He told them everything, especially Xehanort and Even."

Riku noticed that Zexion was beginning to speak in third person, but refrained from commenting as his elder brother went on.

"When Xehanort first asked him to join in the experiments because of his wonderful tallents, Ienzo was thrilled," Zexion said softly, voice dropping as the shadow of regret began to sink into his tone. "He was finally no longer just a little kid following along after the older apprentances. He was actually one of them, and he felt like everything was going great. When you and Mother moved away, he was naturally upset, but he managed to get over it because he still had his father nearby. Of course, after nearly eight years of experiments, he was beginning to see why Braig and Dilan seemed so reluctant to let him in their group.

"He was almost nineteen when he finally decided he wanted to stop working with them and go to live with you and Mother on Destiny Islands," Zexion continued, visible eye lowering a fraction. "By then, Xehanort was on the verge of insanity--he did not seem like himself anymore. The wonderful man who had practically raised Ienzo when in the labs was gone, replaced by a monster of sorts that refused to let Ienzo go. Just one day before the time Ienzo planned to run away in case something went wrong, he went to check up on the experiments one last time with Braig and inform him of what he was planning so someone would know. But he never got the chance."

The story ended here as Zexion sighed deeply and closed his eyes, turning away.

"And thus I was born."

"You don't concider yourself Ienzo?" Riku asked quietly. Zexion chuckled and gave a wry smile.

"Half of Ienzo, yes. But Zexion is virtually the opposite of Ienzo. I am no where near as open, as innocent, as _naive_ as he was--I am, after all, the Cloaked Schemer for a reason. According to the little opening speach Xigbar gave me--jokingly, I would assume--I am supposed to not care about anyone but myself and my fellow Nobodys, because it's easier to manipulate someone when you do not have to worry about how they feel about it. Of course, Nobodys cannot technically _care_, but we do remember what it was like."

"Hmph, well that's stupid." Zexion blinked in surprise and glanced over at Riku, who had arched an eyebrow as he folded his arms over his chest. "Obviously you 'care' more about others than you just said you should, otherwise you wouldn't have been so excited when you saw Mom."

"Excited?" Zexion repeated blankly. Riku smirked and nodded.

"Yeah. That feeling you get when you find out something happened that seemed like it never would, something that just makes you want to jump up and down and run around in circles until you die."

"Ah." Zexion seemed thoughtful for a few moments. "I...remember that. Yes. It was like 'thrilled', only a bit more intesified."

"Yep," Riku agreed with a grin. "And since you now remember, it's obvious that you 'felt' it when you first saw Mom, right?"

Zexion pondered that for a few moments, brow furrowed in thought, before he smiled a bit and nodded. "Yes," he decided quietly. "That is exactly what I 'felt'...exactly."

Riku's grin widened in response.

"Hey, what do ya say we go get something to eat before we land," Riku asked, walking over to Zexion and slinging an arm around his brother's shoulders. Zexion stumbled a bit in surprise, glancing up in confusion at the still-grinning Riku. "What do ya say...Bro?"

A few moments of silence.

And then, for the first time in a long time, Zexion gave a full, honest smile and nodded for emphasis. "Agreed," he said, feeling the hole in his chest disappear for an instant. But it disappeared for an instant he thought never would have been possible, and probably would not have been, should Riku not have said what he did when he did.

If Zexion would have been paying more attention as he left the room, he might have heard the soft "thump-thump" that echoed briefly from his chest, disappearing moments later as if it had never been there at all.

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"Xemnas," Lucrecia mumbled, leaning closer to Xemnas and gently nipping his ear.

"Mmmmm," was all he could say in response, trying not to melt right there. Lucrecia smiled a bit and moved her lips to capture his, drawing him into yet another long, passionate (on her side) kiss.

When the need for air forced her back, she quietly continued her previous thought. "I think it's almost time to land."

Xemnas looked almost helplessly at her, reminding Lucrecia of the night before so that she chuckled quietly. "Don't give me that look," she chided softly. She leaned foreward and nipped his lip, causing him to try and take hers again, although she pulled back and gave another chuckle. "There are children around, Xemnas."

"We didn't go too far," he mumbled, frowning at her. She smiled good-naturedly and poked his nose.

"Up."

Xemnas sighed and obidiently moved the arm he had draped over Lucrecia in his protectiveness, allowing her to sit up and stretch a bit. The only articles of clothing she had shed were her shoes and jacket, which were easily gathered.

"You know, we could lay here for a little longer," Xemnas said to her, voice a slightly mischievious whisper. Lucrecia snorted at that and shook her head.

"I'd imagine the fight between Riku and Zexion is over, and Riku will get suspicious if he doesn't see me soon," she explained, also whispering. She pulled on her jacket, pausing to glance at Xemnas with a playful smile. "We'll work on that later."

"You still look sexy in that outfit."

The honest way that he said it had Lucrecia glancing over curiously, frowning a bit. "I'm an old woman, and this was mostly just to prove a point to you. I'm at least getting a different shirt when we get back."

Xemnas pouted a bit at her, an expression that had Lucrecia stiffling laughter. "I like that shirt," he complained softly.

"Because you get to see a little something extra," she said pointedly. He made no move to object to that, only smirking a bit in response as she pulled on her shoes. "Besides, I have no need to attract a man. I have the love of my life right here."

This seemed to cause Xemnas to deflate a fraction as he sighed quietly. "I...want to say the same."

Wincing to herself, Lucrecia gave him a long, hard look. "You don't have to." Xemnas tilted his head at the seriousness in her voice, frowning a fraction. She smiled at him. "I love you enough for the both of us."

"It will never be enough for either of us," Xemnas said realistically, running a hand through his mussed hair as he propped himself up against the headboard. "You want me to love you back just as much as I do. But..." He sighed again and moved his gaze to the wall, suddenly looking depressed. "It can't happen. Nobodys can't feel, after all. We don't have the Heart for it."

"First off, that was a bad joke," Lucrecia said with a frown, walking over to stand over him. Xemnas did not respond, merely staring up at her. "Second," she leaned forward and gently caught his lips one more time, again putting as much feeling as she could into it. Nearly a full minute passed before she finally pulled back, continuing to speak in only a whisper between panted breaths. "You don't need your own Heart. We can share mine."

And with that, she walked out the door, leaving a dumbfounded Xemnas in her wake.

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Ten minutes later, Xemnas finally got up and grabbed his cloak, which had been discarded along with his shoes before he was pulled into bed by Lucrecia. He gently touched his bare chest (as he was one of the few who wore nothing underneath his cloak) and frowned a bit at the distant thump that seemed to be appearing spaztically since Lucrecia had said what she did.

The power of words was amazing.

He doubted Lucrecia realized what she had done by saying what she did. What she had potentionally let in with the innocent statement. But she had no idea about the extensive research Xehanort and his fellow apprentances had done. She had no idea that such words, when spoken to a Nobody or Heartless, would become true. Kingdom Hearts cared not who the recipient was--so long as the intentions were pure, wishes of the Heart, whether pertaining to creation or destruction, would be granted.

Xemnas now had a section of his love's Heart, which was invaluable and something that he would now cherish. But the problem was not the sudden burst of emotions he felt, or the sudden realization that he would have to hide them. No--the problem was that Lucrecia had opened up her own Heart to the Darkness by giving him such a pure piece of Heart.

And not even Xemnas knew what that would lead to.

Although his Heartless, smirking on its imaginary perch nearby, _did_.


	8. Chapter 7

Kingdom Hearts:

The Truth Behind Xehanort

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Summary: Riku, Sora, and Kairi have finally returned to Destiny Islands after their two and a half year-long adventure across the universe. Things have finally settled down and everything has seemingly returned to the normal, boring way it was before. But when a letter from the King sets off a mysterious chain of events, can Riku save the one thing dearer to him than his friends? And better yet--what is this secret King Mickey has uncovered by going through the files on Ansem's computer...? "XEHANORT HAD A _WHAT_?!" "A fiancée, Riku. Xehanort had a fiancée." Pairings: Xehanort/OC; Suggested/Friendships: Any and All! (ie, Axel/RoxasSuggested, Zexion/LexaeusSuggested, Riku/SoraSuggested, Sora/KairiSuggested, Riku/Kairi/SoraSuggested, Zexion/DemyxSuggested, Xigbar/XaldinSuggested, etc.)

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Warnings: Major spoilers mixed in, bad language, hinted shonen-ai, possible/suggested (graphic?) character death, gruesome and multiple fight scenes, graphic torture, and possible (attempted?) (graphic?) suicide. Warnings are subject to change as story proceeds.

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Notes: 7-3-08 I don't own KH, FF(insert number here), any sort of anime/manga titles, or Disney, so anything related to them is not mine. I do, however, own my OCs, this storyline, and so on. Please excuse any problems with anyone's characters, as for about three of them, I truthfully have little to no experience and am going only on what I believe would be appropriate. And if you have any suggestions for anything, feel free to tell me! I enjoy flames, too--just not the perverted kind. X3

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**LUCRECIA'S JOURNAL, ENTRY SEVEN:**

**WERE-ELF**

**((MKL: aka "dude, they're all gunna die!"))**

Saïx was the first to notice the unmistakable scent of someone who was recently aroused, smirking at Lucrecia as she walked inside. She merely grinned in response and shook her head to his silent suggestions/thoughts. The younger of the two chuckled to himself, but did not say anything aloud.

Lucrecia walked past him and into the kitchen, blinking in surprise at the sight that greeted her as her jaw slowly began to drop.

"Got any fours, Zex?" Riku asked, glancing upwards. Zexion shook his head.

"Go fish," he responded with a slight smirk. Riku groaned and took another card to add to his overflowing hand, a stark contrast to his brother's two cards. "Sixes, Little Brother?"

"Aw man, you suck!"

Zexion snickered at him and took the card, laying down another pair. He glanced towards Mickey, who stared back apathetically, holding five cards in all. "Do you have any eights, King Mickey?"

"Nope!" Mickey said with a bright smile. Zexion's smirk deflated and he groaned as he picked up another card, causing Riku to laugh in return.

"Just stop asking him, Bro," Riku snickered. "You're not getting any of his cards."

"Good thing I could always get one from you, then," Zexion said in response, arching an eyebrow. "Unless, of course, you are just hoarding those so you can use them later?"

Riku abruptly scowled, pouting childishly. "Shut up..."

"...Shiva, it's the appocolypse," Lucrecia finally said, unable to stop the grin that came to her face as she stood in the doorway. The three at the table glanced up and all smiled and/or nodded a greeting

"Hey, Mom!" Riku called brightly. He lifted his handful of cards. "You want in next round? I'm pretty sure Zexion's going to win soon."

"Or me," Mickey said with a quiet chuckle. "Sorry, Riku, but you're kinda out of the runnin'."

Riku merely frowned at him and shook his head. "Y'know, since Mom's here, we can stop playing, right? Besides, we're almost here."

"Hold on, we do not have a winner yet," Zexion said with a frown. Riku ignored him and set down his cards face-up, showing that he had one of everything...except an eight. Zexion frowned now at that. "You are an asshole, even when you are not trying to be."

"Language, Zexion!" Lucrecia snapped, giving him a disapproving look. He winced a bit.

"Sorry, Mother..."

Lucrecia smiled and nodded before glancing between the two fo them, blinking innocently and arching an eyebrow. "Then you two settled everything?"

"Mostly," Riku said with a shrug. "We've only spoken so much, but I guess he's all right...for a twenty-six-year-old in an eighteen-year-old body."

"...I believe I have that catagory covered with pretty much everyone, Little Brother," Zexion deadpanned. Lucrecia chuckled and smiled down at them again with a nod, ruffling Riku's hair.

"That's wonderful," she said, kissing first Riku on the cheek, then Zexion. Both boys immidiately protested this, Riku flushing a bright red as Zexion slowly started to turn pink. "Now, now. If I can't kiss my children in public, who can I kiss?"

"Someone else," Riku decided with a frown, fixing--or rather, re-messing--his hair.

Xemnas happened to walk into the room at that exact moment, Saïx immidiately following behind, causing Zexion to snicker as Lucrecia choaked on air. Confused, Xemnas glanced at her just as she recovered and began to laugh, then Zexion as he lifted a hand to smother his smirk. Mickey was chuckling as well, though Riku and Saïx seemed just as out of the loop as he was.

"Did I...miss something?" he asked slowly. This only caused Lucrecia to laugh harder as Zexion and Mickey threatened to join her.

"Whatever it was, I missed it, too," Riku said with a frown, staring at his mother like she was from another planet. "...or it just flew over my head."

"Do not worry about it, Lord Superior," Saïx sighed, shaking his head. "Something tells me we don't want to know."

Xemnas merely sighed and nodded.

"A-anyway," Lucrecia said, recovering from her laughter long enough to smile and glance towards Mickey, "we're landing soon, right?"

"Yep!" Mickey agreed, smiling as he nodded. "We're in orbit right now. I was just waitin' ta finish this game. Which reminds me." He flipped over his hand and grabbed five of Riku's cards, smile widening as he nodded at Zexion. "Sorry, Zexion, but I won."

Zexion muttered something unrepeatable (and physically impossible) under his breath, causing Riku to stiffle a laugh. Mickey merely grinned before going to the main bay, the others slowly following.

"We should probably split into two groups," Saïx said quietly when they made it to the main room.

"Right," Mickey said with a nod. He glanced between them and frowned in thought. "Riku, me, and Xemnas can be one group, and Saïx, Zexion, and Lucrecia can be the other."

Immidiately he was met with cries of protest. See if you can figure out who said what:

"King Micky, you're not honestly putting her with two Nobodys--!!" "Can I not stay near Master Xemnas--?!" "What is your reasoning behind this--??" "Do we have no choice in the matter--?!" "B-but King Mickey, sir, why--?!"

"Look, you guys'll just have ta trust me," Mickey interupted. Everyone shut up, but they all gave him such looks that he sighed and slowly began to explain. "Whelp, Riku, don't ya want Xemnas close by so he can be watched?"

"Well, I guess," Riku admitted slowly.

"And besides, Zexion's her son, too. He'll protect her."

Riku glanced uneasily at his brother before he finally sighed and gave a nod of defeat. Satisfied, Mickey moved on.

"Saïx, Xemnas will be fine," Mickey assured the blue-haired man. "I'll make sure Riku doesn't try ta kill 'im, and he's more than ready ta fight against the Heartless."

"...I...see," Saïx merely said, giving a quiet sigh of his own. Mickey smiled at him and picked his next target.

"Zexion, you can protect your mother this way. If ya think about it, you can do it better than everyone else, since ya got your Lexicon."

Zexion hesitated a moment and his gaze shifted towards his mother before he slowly let out a breath and nodded his defeat.

"Xemnas," Mickey went on, turning to his final main target, "they'll be fine."

That was all he had to say for Xemnas to reluctantly grunt his agreement to the terms.

Mickey finally looked at Lucrecia, who gave a quiet sigh and nodded.

"Protect him?" she asked quietly, convaying the meaning behind her words with her eyes.

"Promise," Mickey said with a nod and a smile. He paused a moment and glanced towards the others. "So now as ta where we're portalin'. My group'll end up in Sunset station. Saïx's group" (apparently Saïx had been silently voted as their mission leader of sorts) "is gunna be in The Usual Spot, which is this place where Roxas' old friends hang out. Saïx, Riku, and Xemnas know who I'm talkin' about." Indeed, the three nodded their slightly grave understanding. Lucrecia and Zexion merely glanced at each other and shrugged in confusion, although Zexion only rasied one shoulder. "Anyway, talk to them. They can tell ya stuff.

"We'll meet in front of Biggs' Armor Shop in five hours," Mikey finished with a nod. "Saïx's group can move out first. If one of us doesn't come back, the other'll throw caution to the wind and portal if they need ta. If it looks like the fight's gunna be destructive, go somewhere without many people. Keepin' the town and each other protected is our number one priority."

The ones before him nodded their agreement.

"Then you guys go. Saïx," he held out something, which was taken hesitantly, "that's a distress whistle. It's tuned ta my aura. Only use it if it's an emergency."

Saïx blinked slowly at the white whistle, which had Mickey's Seal on the side of it in green, then nodded and put it in the pocket of his cloak.

"See you soon," he said, gazing at Xemnas. The elder man nodded before gazing pointedly at Lucrecia and Zexion. He made a hand signal, which Zexion appeared to interperate as a goodbye, since he smirked a bit and nodded. Lucrecia smiled at Riku first, then Xemnas, and finally Mickey (just to make it seem more normal) before stepping back onto a blue platform, feeling Saïx take her right sleeve and Zexion her left.

"The Usual Spot," Saïx announced in a loud, clear voice. There was a pause before sparkles flashed around them.

And with that, they were gone.

Xemnas stared at the spot where they had disappeared for a long moment. "...be safe," he mumbled, saying aloud what he had signaled to Zexion.

"Don't worry, Xemnas," Mickey said with a smile and a nod. "They'll be fine."

Xemnas slowly reached up to touch his chest, feeling the sputtering Heartbeat that slowly disappeared. He gave a quiet sigh and closed his eyes. "Somehow...I get the feeling they won't."

He would say no more.

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When Lucrecia, Saïx, and Zexion re-appeared, they had to rapidly blink the sparkles out of their eyes. Or rather, Lucrecia did, since she forgot to close her eyes. When they finally cleared, she glanced around the area and smiled. The beige room, with its worn couch, random posters, dartboard, and single couch, vaguely reminded her of Xehanort's old room before she had come along. The thought made her smile widen.

"So then, where should we begin to look?" Zexion asked, glancing around with interest.

"I think we should leave this place before we do anything," Saïx said, frowning. "We won't get anywhere just standing around in here."

"Hey, you!" a voice suddenly called. The whole group froze and turned to look just as a blonde boy walked into the room, brown eyes narrowed in suspicion as he folded his arms over his chest. Slowly inching in behind him was a brunette with long hair in a creative style with ivy-green eyes and a slightly pudgy boy with spikey brown hair kept out of his brown orbs by a headband. The blonde boy glowered at them, apparently the leader of the group. "What are you doing here? This is _our_ spot."

"Oh, uh, sorry," Lucrecia said with a nervous chuckle. She innocently rubbed the back of her head and flashed them a smile. "We literally just got here. We'll leave right away."

"Yeah, you'd better."

"Hayner, you're being rude!" the girl suddenly exclaimed, giving the blonde boy a look. He merely rolled his eyes in response as she turned forward, smiling at the group and folding her hands together in front of her stomach. "Sorry about him. He's a bit rude. I'm Olette."

"And I'm Pence!" the brunette said with a wave and a grin.

"This guy," Olette gestured towards the blonde, who seemed a bit on-edge, "is Hayner."

"Nice to meet you," Lucrecia said with a smile. "I'm Lucrecia. This is my son, Zexion," the silver-haired teen inclined his head towards them politely, "and an old friend of mine, Saïx," the blue-haired man merely stared at them. She leaned towards Olette and continued in a stage-whisper. "They're a bit quiet and tend to distance themselves from the crowd, but they're nice boys."

"...I think I should be offended," Saïx said after a few moments, expression deadpan. Zexion totally ignored that and took a step forward.

"Have any of you seen anything odd around here?" he asked quietly. "Maybe an abnormally-large black creature with yellow eyes, or a strange person with short blonde hair running around in a cloak like ours..."

"I've seen both," Pence offered, raising his hand.

"Oh yeah, we saw the blonde-haired person in the Sandlot just a little while ago, didn't we?" Olette asked rhetorically. "I think Seifer's gang was getting on her back, but she did something and they ran off. I think Hayner saw what it was."

"...she summoned this knife and threw it at them," he said reluctantly, staring at Saïx with suspicion. He was ignored by said man, who was standing there stoicly with his arms folded over his chest. "It cut Rai's cheek. Then, when they still didn't move, she created this ball of lightening and glared at them and they all ran off."

"Larxene," Zexion and Saïx said in unison, Zexion making a face as he did so and Saïx giving a half-groan.

"Out of everyone, it's Larxene," Saïx mumbled, lifting a hand to cover half of his face as he stiffled another groan.

"You know her, I take it?" Pence asked, blinking.

"She's not our main priority here," Lucrecia cut in, frowning at them. "We're a bit more worried about the big black creature." She turned towards Pence, smiling innocently. "You said you saw it?"

"Yeah." Pence nodded, suddenly frowning as he folded his arms over his chest. "It was about as tall as he was," he gestured towards Saïx, "and it had blue hair like him, too, but it moved around like it was alive. It looked like it was wearing some kinda suit and it seemed to have a white tinge. But its eyes were the freakiest part. They were, like, pure yellow and glowing."

"Where did you see it?" Saïx asked, frowning a fraction. The similarities were nagging at him.

"Near the mansion, in the front garden," Pence said with a nod. "Do you want me to take you there? I've got time."

"Thank you!" Lucrecia said with a smile, clapping her hands together. She suddenly remembered Hayner and Olette and frowned a bit. "But...what about your friends?"

"We'll be fine," Hayner snapped.

"Hayner, would you cool it?" Olette sighed, rolling her eyes at him. He merely scowled at her as she smiled at the others. "Don't worry, we'll be fine."

"Nonsense," Lucrecia said with a determinded look. "You'll come with us, too."

"Mother," Zexion hissed, giving her a look.

"What are you doing?!" Saïx growled on her other side. Lucrecia rolled her eyes before smiling sweetly at the others.

"Give us a sec," she told them before dragging the two into a corner. She was abruptly serious as she gave them pointed looks, putting her hands on her hips. "What?"

"What are you thinking?" Zexion demanded, eye narrowed a fraction.

"They are children," Saïx added, not looking happy at all with the situation. Lucrecia frowned at them.

"Exactly!" she exclaimed. The two jerked back a bit, both clearly confused, so she sighed and went on in a whisper. "Look, they're kids, and we have no idea where this Heartless is. We can't just leave them alone! What if it comes here, sensing easy pray or whatever?!"

"I...never thought of that," Zexion admitted softly.

"I still do not like it," Saïx said with a frown, "but I see your point. Hey, you three!" They all turned to look at him, breaking away from their own conversation. "Can you fight?"

"I'm the newest Struggle champion," Hayner snorted, rolling his eyes. He smirked a bit. "I'd have to say so."

"Um, I know a bit of Fire, Reflect, and Cure Magic," Olette offered, a slight flush on her cheeks at the admition. When Hayner and Pence gave her confused looks, she elaborated. "My dad knows Master Yen Sid. He started teaching me the basics just two weeks ago, because he said that I would 'need it soon enough'."

"Good old Master Yen Sid," Zexion mumbled with a bit of a smirk. He was unheard/ignored.

"And you, Pence?" Lucrecia asked innocently. Pence sighed and shook his head.

"Sorry," he told them, "but I'm useless in a fight. I'm a computers-and-recon type of guy."

"See, Saïx?" Lucrecia asked with a smile up at her old friend, chuckling quietly. "The only one we need to worry about is Pence, but I think he'll be fine so long as the other two flank him the whole time."

"...fine," Saïx finally said, frowning in annoyance. "But I hold the right to send them home should I see fit."

Lucrecia's smile widened. "Thanks, Saïx!"

He merely grunted in response.

"Wait, why do you need to know if we can fight?" Hayner suddenly asked, frowning and apparently feeling a bit better than he had moments before. Lucrecia paused a moment and glanced towards Zexion, who frowned but did not object to her silent question, then Saïx, who gave her a pointed look but again made no move to stop her. Lucrecia sighed quietly and turned back to them.

"Well, we can talk while you take us there," she decided with a nod. The three teenagers exchanged looks before leading the way, Lucrecia beginning with the basics. "Okay, so there are these creatures called Heartless, which are created..."

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By the time the group made it to the mansion, Hayner, Pence, and Olette were given the cliffnotes version of what Heartless and Nobodys were, as well as the reason why they were looking for the Heartless--to destroy it so it would not hurt anyone on that world. Of course, they had to explain about the Universe as well, but they actually seemed to take that much easier than the Heartless and Nobody aspects.

"I always thought there was more out there than this world," Olette said with a smile after the explination.

"Yeah, but it's still a bit weird," Hayner agreed. He had seemed to warm up conciderably, actually smiling at one point before he got over it.

"And really cool, too," Pence added with a grin. "Gee, to think all that's out there..."

"Hate to burst your bubble, children," Saïx said, not sounding like he hated it at all, "but are we nearly there? We _are_ on a time restraint."

"Oh, right!" Pence laughed nervously as they made it into the forest. "It's right through here. See that light past these trees?"

"The mansion is there?" Zexion asked, frowning a bit. The three teens nodded.

"It's really weird, too," Hayner said with a frown of his own. "There's this huge computer under the library floor, and it leads to this alternate reality..."

"You know about it?" Saïx immidiately asked, eyes narrowed dangerously.

"_You_ know about it?" Olette retorted, staring at him.

"I only told Olette and Hayner it existed!" Pence announced, also staring.

"...the alternate reality leads to another world altogether," Zexion offered quietly, aware through speaking with Xigbar about the situation. "Our world. The World That Never Was. That's why he seems so upset."

"Well, I sent Sora there so they could beat these guys that had his girlfriend..."

"That was you?" Saïx asked, growing increasingly pissed as his eyes shined dangerously. Zexion noticed what was happening and quickly grabbed Saïx's shoulder, having to extend his arm almost fully to do so.

"Calm down, Saïx," Zexion told him firmly. "Wait until we have the Heartless before you lose it."

Saïx slowly calmed down, although he still looked a bit miffed.

"Why does he care?" Hayner asked Lucrecia, clearly confused. She sighed and shook her hair, shoving at the strands falling into her eyes.

"His friends were among the group that Sora went to go destroy," she told him slowly, thinking carefully. "Including his Superior, who he's very protective of. It seems the wound is still fresh, so to speak."

"I thought the Organization was made up of a group of thugs," Olette said with a frown. "At least, that's what Sora told us."

"Sora has a bit of a black-and-white view of the world," Zexion offered quietly, turning from Saïx. He kept his hand on the man's shoulder as if to keep the beast inside...metaphorically speaking, as far as Lucrecia was concerned. "He sees good and evil. He does not realize there are people who are neither, or both, depending on who you ask. Organization XIII was one of those in-between groups."

"So he automatically put it in the 'evil' catagory," Pence summed up. He paused a moment, then sighed a bit. "Well, sorry then. I didn't know."

"Don't worry, Pence," Lucrecia quickly assured him with a smile. "Besides, they really did have Sora's girlfriend, but that's because...because..." She suddenly looked confused and turned to Saïx. "Hey, why _did_ you have Kairi?"

"Because we were rescuing her from Axel," Saïx said stiffly, obviously trying to keep his "emotions" under control. "We were planning on bringing her back, but when he invaded the Castle, Lord Superior ordered us to keep her."

"Ahhh, I see. As a bargining chip of sorts to get him out."

"Or at least listen to what we had to say."

"As interesting as this conversation is getting," Hayner suddenly said, glancing at them, "I see the girl you guys were talking about--Larx-something. She's over there."

He gestured towards the enterance where, sure enough Larxene was sitting, her legs pulled to her chest with her long arms wrapped losely around them as she rested her head on her knees, eyes closed. There were what appeared to be tearstains sliding down her grimy cheeks, which were covered with dirt and sweat. Her hair was a mess, a few stray twigs scattered through it and a small glop of mud just behind her right ear, and there was a long, still-bleeding gash on her forehead that looked like it had been created within the last few hours.

"She's a wreck," Zexion mumbled, sounding surprised at the thought.

"I doubt she's been anywhere near any showers or shops for a while," Lucrecia retorted with a frown. "Look, I'll go make sure she's okay."

"And the Heartless?" Saïx immidiately asked. Lucrecia's frown deepened.

"She looks hurt. We'll worry about the Heartless after I make sure she's okay." When Zexion and Saïx merely gave her a look, she gave a rather agrivated sigh. "Look, I don't want to scare her by bringing too many people, and from what I hear, you two aren't on her top-five-favorite-people list." When they continued to stare, she groaned and threw her hands up in defeat. "Fine! Olette can come with to watch my back, and one of you two can come a bit closer while the other stays back here with Hayner and Pence. Just...stay out of her line of sight, okay? We shouldn't freak her out and she'll feel better waking up to girls." Still unconvinced, although wavering slightly. "...trust me."

"...I will stay with her," Saïx decided a moment later. "Zexion, you remain with these two, just in case. Watch our backs."

"Of course," Zexion responded smoothly. He lifted a hand up into the air and a light flew around him, landing in his hand and flashing into existance. A thick black book with a silver Nobody design and various sketches on the cover appeared in the open hand, and he quickly brought it down, muttering something under his breath as he flipped it open. Saïx seemed satisfied as he walked over to Lucrecia and Olette, the sooner of which was watching curiously while the later wondered what the heck a kid with a book could do.

"C'mon, Olette," Lucrecia said quietly, gesturing towards the girl.

"R-right," Olette quickly said, casting one last look at Zexion before moving with Lucrecia to stand in front of the apparently-slumbering girl. Lucrecia crouched down and gently took the woman's shoulder.

"Larxene? Larxene?" She shook the blonde's shoulder and tilted her head, voice raising a fraction. "Larxene, it's okay. Wake up..."

The woman twitched and shifted a bit, then her eyes slowly flickered open, revealing light green orbs that sparkled with their own light. She seemed a bit sluggish at first and stared blankly at Lucrecia, then her eyes widened in surprise. "N-no!" she immidiately cried, trying to lunge backwards only to suddenly realize that she was siting against a tree. She whimpered quietly and raised her hands to shield her face. "D-don't hurt me..."

"It's okay, Larxene," Lucrecia said with a soft smile. Larxene jerked in surprise and blinked up at the older woman, who nodded encouragingly. "I'm Lucrecia. I'm here to help you. Your friends sent me?"

Larxene gave a warbling laugh at that, shaking her head. "What friends?"

"The Organization." Larxene again jerked in surprise, eyes bugging out as she stared up at Lucrecia with obvious wonder. "Look, they want to help. Xemnas himself said that he wanted to go out and make sure everyone was all right."

"Lord Superior?" Larxene asked weakly. Lucrecia nodded, continuing to smile.

"Yes," she assured the blonde. "I'm here to help on his behalf. He's actually nearby, looking for you, too."

"He is?"

Lucrecia laughed at the stunned tone Larxene used and nodded again, smile widening. "Yes, he is. Along with two other members of the Organization, my son Riku Xen, and King Mickey himself."

"The King?" Larxene echoed, sounding even more shocked--if that were possible. Lucrecia nodded again and Larxene hesitated. "Lord Superior...and the others...they're...not mad?"

"Well, sure they are, but they're not going to hurt you," Lucrecia told her re-assuringly, voice soft. She held out her hand to Larxene. "I won't let them. I promise."

Larxene hesitated another moment before slowly reaching out with a slightly torn glove and taking Lucrecia's hand. She was almost immidiately pulled to her feet, where Lucrecia could finally see how torn her cloak was and the various wounds on her sides and shoulders. Lucrecia's eyes widened in surprise.

Following her gaze, Larxene pulled back her hand and rubbed her other arm rather awkwardly. "I...this Heartless keeps attacking me, and I don't know why," she finally said, gazing curiously at Lucrecia. She paused again. "I don't know any Healing Magic."

Lucrecia chuckled at the embaressed tone of voice. "Don't worry--Healing Magic is hard to master," she assured the younger woman. Larxene suddenly noticed Olette, who was standing by and watching curiously, and the blonde visibly tensed. Lucrecia quickly noticed. "Oh, that's a friend of mine, Olette. She's here to help, too."

"Hello, Larxene," Olette greeted with a smile and a wave, closing her eyes almost for emphasis. Larxene managed a half-smile, half-grimance before she clutched her right side, hissing in pain. Olette was immidiately concerned and reached forward, cupping the other woman's hand with her own. "Here, let me heal that. Cure!"

Healing green light drifted from Olette's hand and onto Larxene's gaping side wound, causing it to slowly close up. It did not completely heal due to the low level of the spell, but it was reasonably better, and Larxene seemed a bit re-energized as well.

"Thanks, Olette," Larxene mumbled, looking rather uncomfortable.

"I've got it from here," Lucrecia assured the younger girl. Olette obidiently let go of Larxene's hand and took a step back as Lucrecia pointed at Larxene. "Curagun!"

The healing light practically exploded from her, taking Larxene in an instant. The rest of her wounds closed at a speed that put Olette's spell to shame, leaving hardly a scar, save one on her arm and one on her forehead. Larxene half-smiled a thanks and nodded at Lucrecia.

"Thank you," Larxene said again, her voice sounding reasonably stronger. Lucrecia chuckled and shook her head.

"Don't mention it," she assured the younger woman. "Now, are you ready to come home?"

The word caused Larxene's eyes to widen. She stared at Lucrecia, slowly mouthed the word, and then what could only have been a grin spread across her face.

"Yeah," she said with a nod, taking a step forward. Lucrecia smiled again.

"HEARTLESS!" Zexion suddenly cried, going to lunge towards the group as Saïx growled and summoned his Claymore. Larxene suddenly noticed him and whimpered again, eyes wide, and before she could comment on anything, Zexion hit a virtually-invisible force field and landed in a heap on the ground, hissing in pain as he gently clutched at his nose.

"Zexion!" Lucrecia immidiately shouted, eyes wide. Zexion shook his head at her, but before anything more could be said, a figure dropped out of the trees and landed in a crouch, growling ferrally. Recognizing the tone of the growl, Lucrecia, Larxene, and Saïx froze.

The Heartless was glaring at them, skin black as coal and black hair, the edges a deep blue, writhing like snakes on its head. Its glowing yellow eyes were locked on Lucrecia, its facial features blocked out, save the bared, pearl-white teeth and the grey X-shaped scar on its forehead. It appeared to be wearing a torn suit with the majority of the front and sleeves torn off as well as the legs below the knees, what was left tinged white along the edges of the tears, and it was wearing no shoes revealing teeth that looked almost wolf-like, with long, dramatic claws. Its hands bore the same claws, tinged white like its outfit, only these were easily twice as long and much more menacing. Its Heartless symbol existed dead in the center of its chest.

"Saïx," Lucrecia began slowly, pulling Olette a step back so she was farther away from the creature (which was virtually frothing a the mouth as it stared at her), "do you have any idea whatever happened to your Heartless when you went Nobody?"

"I do now," he responded lowly, holding his inactive Claymore tightly in his right hand. He kept it in front of him and just off the ground like a makeshift shield. "And it does not seem too happy with you."

"What did I do?"

"Now is not the time to question that."

"...I will remember that later."

Saïx stayed silent at that as the Heartless continued to stare at Lucrecia, snarling profusely. "Dark!" it suddenly shouted, voice virtually identical to Saïx's, yet deeper, naturally demonic-sounding, and with an underlying growl.

Everyone stared.

"It spoke?" Larxene asked rather stupidly.

"It opened its mouth and words came out," Lucrecia said just as stupidly, although managing to retain a bit of herself.

"Since when do Heartless talk?!"

"Since now, apparently," Saïx said dryly. The Heartless seemed unamsed and growled loudly.

"Dark!" it repeated before lunging at Lucrecia, drool dripping from its mouth. Lucrecia nearly fell over.

"Ahhh! Reflect!" she shouted, holding up her hand as she yanked Olette into the shield that appeared. The Heartless hit it face-first and yelped as it was thrown backwards, ending up against another tree. It immidiately jumped back to its hands and feet, crouched in a canine-like structure as Lucrecia quickly tried to comfort Olette, who was shaking like a leaf.

"Don't worry, Olette," she said quietly. "Just cast Reflect if it comes near you. Okay?"

Olette slowly nodded and retreated to stand over by where Zexion was cursing and trying to break down the barrior, Hayner and Pence joining in. Their efforts were obviously futile.

"Larxene!" Larxene jumped at the barked order and Lucrecia glanced over, frowning a bit. "Your element?"

"Lightening," she almost immidiately said. She paused a moment and gazed at Lucrecia in confusion. "Why?"

"You know how to absorb it?" Lucrecia went on, seemingly ignoring the question. Dawning fell over Larxene and she smirked and nodded, summoning up six Kunai to rest between her fingers as Saïx and his Heartless watched, both slightly confused, although the Heartless seemed to be getting impatient.

"Go on."

Lucrecia grinned at her and again pointed. "Thunderagun!"

Immidiately a bolt of lightening as large around as a tree hit Larxene dead-on, leaving the spectators to the fight speechless. Before anyone could say anything, however, the lightening abruptly disapepared, leaving Larxene laughing in a crazed way as she literally crackled with energy. Her eyes were glowing so brightly it hurt to look at them as she crouched down a bit, smirking stupidly at the Heartless that had been temporarily blinded by the attack.

"Wish I could say I was sorry about doing this, Saïx," she called just a bit too cheerfully.

"...something tells me you do not mean that," Saïx merely sighed, rolling his eyes.

"And it'd be right!" With that, Larxene charged the Heartless, flinging multiple Kunai charged with lightening flying towards it. Immidiately the Heartless ducked under the first four, but it got hit in the arm by the others. It was frozen, its snarl stuck in place as lightening coursed over its body, creating yellow blasts as thick as a pencil between its fingers and the parts of its snaking hair. Larxene quickly summoned up six new ones and disappeared, re-appearing just behind it. "Take this!!"

She began sending Kunai, also electro-charged, flying at its back, reaching back and summoning new ones mere moments after they left her fingers. Larxene stopped only when there was no more room to hit, eyes dimmed back to the way it was before being energized and just a touch winded as she grinned stupidly.

"And that, ladies and gents, is how it's done," she announced, pumping a fist into the air. No sooner had the words left her mouth than the Kunai stuck in the Heratless' back suddenly forced themselves out, flying back towards Larxene. She paled conciderably. "Oh...crap..."

"Reflect!" Lucrecia quickly called. The shield appeared just in time, but instead of bouncing back, the weapons disappeared. Larxene shot her a thankful look, but before they could say anything, the Heartless snarled and abruptly lunged to its feet, slightly hunched over as Darkness flew from its back. Lucrecia, Larxene, and Saïx could only watch in horror as the wounds on its back healed themselves.

"Will you just die already?!" Lucrecia demanded with a groan.

"The fight's only just started," Saïx said seriously, moving to stand in front of her protectively. The Heartless whirled towards him and almost seemed to grin as it growled again, leaning towards him.

"Other!" it announced rather joyfully.

"Reluctantly so."

The Heartless' brief moment of what seemed to be confusion was all the time Saïx needed. Snarling himself, Saïx activated his weapon, sending the spikes flying outward and just missing Lucrecia's face.

"Watch it!" she cried, jerking out of the way. Saïx ignored her and charged forward, letting out a battle cry of sorts and slamming it down into the ground. His Heartless crumbled under the weight, actually turning into a pile of gooey Darkness in the small crator Saïx had created.

"...whoa," Larxene, Lucrecia, and Olette all said in unison, the boys outside of the shield openly staring. Just when they were about to congradulate Saïx, the goo _jiggled_.

Slowly, it raised around Saïx's weapon and pulled back towards the other end of the shield, actually brushing up against it so that the structure flashed gently as it slowly re-formed the Heartless from the feet-up. Lucrecia was green by the end of it.

"I...think I might hurl," she mumbled, putting a hand to her mouth. She whirled away from the sight and closed her eyes, even paler than usual as the Heartless stared blankly at Saïx.

"Other?" it asked meekly. Saïx stared at it, but then it suddenly turned its attention to Lucrecia and its snarl returned. "Dark!"

"No!" Saïx shouted more out of reflex as the Heartless prepared to lunge. It stopped mid-jump and slowly pulled back, gazing at Saïx in confusion.

"No?" it repeated as Lucrecia recovered herself and turned back around.

Saïx stared at it. "...don't...hurt her."

The Heartless tilted its head, looking rather like a dog, and grinned again. "'Kay!"

Everyone at this point was openly staring at it.

"Is it just me, or is it actually listening to you?" Larxene asked, half-screeching. The Heartless looked at her in confusion.

"Listen?" it repeated. It paused and its pointed ears, before unnoticed due to the writhing of its hair, twitched. It suddenly grinned again. "Listen!"

"...okaaaaaay..." Zexion said slowly from the other side of the shield.

"Uh, Heartless," Saïx began hesitantly, staring at the creature as it turned to stare at him with what he assumed was curiosity. "Can you...drop the barrior?"

"Barrior," it echoed, obviously processing the word. The whole of the barrior flashed and it suddenly grinned. "Barrior!" It gazed at Saïx again. "Drop?"

"...yes."

The Heartless paused a moment and probably thought before it seemed to realize what he meant. A few moments passed and then the barrior disappeared, allowing Hayner and Pence to run to Olette and fuss over her, trying to make sure she was all right, as Zexion slowly made his way over to Lucrecia and Larxene.

"This is a new development," Zexion muttered quietly, putting a hand to his chin in thought as he gazed at the Heartless. Said Heartless was staring back.

"Development," it repeated. Suddenly its hair moved into a style more like Saïx's and it grinned again. "Development!"

"It seems to be learning as it hears us speak."

"Speak! Learn?"

It paused again and gazed at Larxene for a few moments, then again grinned and summoned up shadowy versions of her Kunai, which disappeared moments later.

"Learn!" it chirped before giving what was almost a laugh.

"...facinating," Zexion finished, staring. He glanced at Saïx. "I think it listens to you the best."

"Best! Best!"

Obidiently the Heartless dropped down to all fours and walked over to Saïx, gazing curiously up at the Nobody. Saïx merely stared back, obviously confused.

"You almost act like a child," the blue-haired man finally said. The Heartless paused and stared.

"Act?" it repeated. Its grin returned for the upteenth time and it suddenly barked like a dog and then started laughing rather childishly. "Act! Act! Doggy!"

"Obviously it's been listening to people around the village," Larxene said slowly, still thinking.

"Village," the Heartless repeated, gazing curiously in the direction. It glanced up at Saïx and tilted its head. "Go village?"

"Er, no," he said slowly. "Stay right here."

"'Kay!"

The Heartless seemed content to do so and sat down like a dog, gazing curiously at Lucrecia.

"It's actually kinda...almost...maybe cute when it's not trying to kill us," Lucrecia decided with a slight smile.

"Cute?" the Heartless asked. It suddenly lunged towards Lucrecia, who squeaked in surprise, then laughed and sat in front of her. You could practically see the imaginary tail wagging behind it as it gazed up at her. "Cute!"

Silence.

"...Saïx, you haven't told me I was cute for nearly twenty-five years," Lucrecia said slowly. She gazed at the Nobody with an arched eyebrow. "You still think I'm cute?"

Saïx slowly began to turn red. "Uh...y...n...I cannot answer that question," he finally said in deadpan.

"Question, question!" the Heartless cheered happily. It suddenly gazed at Lucrecia again. "Cute Dark. Why Dark?"

"Dark?" Lucrecia echoed. She glanced at the others in confusion. "What does it mean?"

"Who knows," Hayner snorted, shaking his head as he and his friends walked over, "but either way, what does it matter?"

"What do you mean, 'what does it matter'?" Lucrecia smiled down at the Heartless, who continued to stare blankly at her with its large yellow eyes. "If it's coming with us, we need to at least understand what it means!"

"Means!" the Heartless agreed. "Coming! Me!"

"What do you mean, it's coming with us?!" Larxene cried, eyes wide as she stared at the Heartless. "That thing tried to kill me! It's been chasing me since I appeared!"

The Heartless stared blankly at her. "Find Other," it said simply. "Smell Other."

Silence followed its statement, so it decided to repeat itself.

"Need find Other. Smell Other. Follow."

"Oh, I get it!" Olette suddenly cried, eyes wide in surprise as she gazed at the others. "It wanted to find its Other, which I think means Saïx, and since Larxene smelled a bit like its Other, it decided to follow you guys!"

"Find Other! Find Saïx!" it announced happily, turning back towards Saïx and grinning. Saïx stared back.

"Why?" he asked rather stupidly. The creature tilted its head.

"Uh...need Other."

"It's getting smarter," Pence noted.

"It smarter!" the Heartless said happily, nodding in excitement.

"You mean 'I am smarter'," Lucrecia corrected kindly. The Heartless stared at her for a few moments.

"...I am smarter."

"Wow, you're right," Olette said. She smiled at the creature. "And it seems harmless, when it's not trying to kill us."

"I am harmless!" the Heartless announced, grinning even more than before. "I not trying kill!"

"'I am not trying to kill'," Lucrecia said. The Heartless paused.

"I am not trying to kill. I am harmless. I...am smarter?"

Lucrecia smiled at the creature and nodded. "That's right."

The Heartless was beaming at this point.

"It's not coming with us," Zexion deadpanned. Lucrecia snorted at him.

"I think that's for Saïx to decide," she responded. The group all turned to stare at Saïx, who was still watching the Heartless intently. Said Heartless suddenly whimpered as it stared up at him with wide yellow eyes, teeth hidden as it probably frowned.

"..." Saïx wisely said.

"I am coming with?" it asked quietly. Saïx stared for a few more moments.

"...well, you can't be left here," Saïx reasoned. "So yes, I suppose you are coming with."

The Heartless cheered and practically tackled Saïx in a hug. "Yay! Yay! Yay!"

Saïx stared down at the creature in his arms before gazing helplessly at the others, of which the Twilight Town-ites snickered, Zexion smirked, and Lucrecia merely smiled and shook her head. Saïx sighed and awkwardly patted it on the head.

"Would you please let go of me?" he asked after a few moments. The Heartless obidiently let go, staring curiously up at Saïx.

"We should introduce ourselves," Lucrecia suddenly said, smiling. "It needs to learn good manners."

"Manners?" the Heartless echoed. It thought for a few moments. "Please? Thank you? Manners?"

"Those are the basics, yes."

The Heartless smiled at her.

"Well, I'll start!" Olette said with a smile. She gestured towards herself. "My name is Olette. Do you know what a name is?"

The Heartless processed this for a few moments. "Name is...what call someone," it finally said after a few moments, nodding. Olette chuckled and nodded.

"Right! So, my name is Olette."

"Mine's Pence!"

"...Hayner."

They paused here so the Heartless could process this. "...Olette," it finally said, gazing at the brunette. "Hayner." Its gaze shifted to the blonde. "Pence." It finished by looking at the brunette male. It smiled. "Olette, Hayner, Pence!"

"You know my name," Saïx deadpanned.

The Heartless nodded and smiled again. "Saïx! Other!"

"Nobody, not Other. There is a difference."

"Difference?" the Heartless questioned, tilting its head. "Difference Nobody and Other?"

"There's a difference between a Nobody and an Other," Lucrecia corrected quietly.

The Heartless quickly fixed its question. "There's a difference between a Nobody and an Other?"

"The Other would be our original," Saïx said slowly. "A Nobody is me, the other half. I am the Body."

"...ironic," the Heartless said with a grin. "Body is _No_-body. Heart is Heart-_less_!"

"Did we say ironic?" Olette asked as it began to laugh.

"Nope," Pence said with a shrug.

"And we didn't tell it what made up a Nobody and a Heartless either," Hayner added, frowning.

"It's teaching itself!" Lucrecia cried happily. She smiled down at it. "It's like having a five-year-old around all over again."

"You are not introducing it as my brother," Zexion deadpanned. He was ignored.

"My name is Lucrecia. And that," she gestured towards Zexion, "is Zexion."

"Lucrecia and Zexion," the Heartless repeated. It smiled and nodded. "Lucrecia and Zexion!"

"Right!" Lucrecia laughed. "That's us!"

"Zexion...smell sort of Lucrecia."

"Yes, he does sort of smell like me," Lucrecia agreed. "He's my son. Do you know what that is?"

"Offspring," it said with a nod. Lucrecia chuckled.

"Mmm-hmm: Offspring. He's my child."

"Child."

"My name is Larxene," the blonde suddenly said, sounding a bit left-out. The Heartless gazed intently at her.

"Larxene," it repeated. It smiled. "Larxene cute, too!"

Again Saïx slowly began to flush, although Larxene merely seemed amused. "Well thanks for that! I like to think so, too."

"Do you have a name?" Pence asked, blinking. The Heartless merely stared at him before shaking its head.

"No name for Heartless," it said with a bit of a shrug.

"I have one!" Lucrecia almost immidiately anounced, smiling.

"...I am almost afraid to ask, but...what is it," Saïx deadpanned.

"Sïa." Saïx winced a bit and Zexion's brow furrowed, but Lucrecia was too busy staring at the Heartless with that same mothering smile. "We can call him Sïa."

"Sïa?" Sïa the Heartless repeated, tilting its head thoughtfully. It paused before grinning and nodding. "I am Sïa! I am Saïx's Heartless!"

"That's right!" Lucrecia laughed in response. She randomly checked her watch and yelped in surprise, causing everyone to stare at her. "Oh Shiva, we're late! We're supposed to meet up with Mickey, Xemnas, and Riku in front of Briggs' shop in twenty minutes!"

"We can make it!" Hayner quickly assured her, nodding determindly. "Come on, I know a shortcut."

He quickly darted off, everyone following...except for Sïa, who hestiated. Lucrecia paused when she noticed this and frowned a bit.

"Are you coming, Sïa?" she asked.

"I live here," it said, suddenly sounding unsure of itself. Lucrecia smiled at it and shook her head.

"You live with us now, silly. You and me and Zexion and Saïx and Larxene...and other people who you can make friends with!"

Sïa stared curiously at her for a few moments. "...I come with?"

"Of course!" Lucrecia laughed, nodding enthusiastically. She held out her hand to it. "Are you coming?"

A few moments passed and Sïa stared hesitantly at the hand. Then, slowly, it reached out and took it. Lucrecia pulled it along almost immidiately, forcing it to run on its back legs, and yet despite the uncomfortable position, the Heartless smiled the whole way.


End file.
